The Key Thing
by joanie.mahoney
Summary: SakuraXNeji...He was so dour and priggish...could she really fall in love with him? Sakura wasn't so sure. Some KibaxSakura as plot development.
1. Chapter 1

This is my first fan fiction, ever. I also have never written a romance, ever. That said, I would like you to be as clear and helpful (read: harsh) as possible in your critiques order that I can improve. This is a SakuraxNeji story, with some hints of InoxShikamaru and HinataxNaruto. _Naruto_ and all related characters are property of not-me.

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Chapter One 

It was ridiculous, just ridiculous. She was an elite kunoichi, and she was confounded by her own deadbolt. Sakura grimaced as she eyed her doorknob, slightly blackened from the chakra she'd pumped into it in an attempt to disable the lock. Apparently the locksmith's claims about his nin-proofed locks weren't just advertising gimmicks. Sakura ran her hand through her hair and considered her options.

She could always climb up the back way, five stories, to the balcony door. She wasn't sure if she'd locked that one. However, such a route would take her past her landlady's window, and old Mrs. Maehashi had certain views on women as shinobi. As long as Sakura stayed in her medic role, Mrs. Maehashi turned a blind eye, but if the old bat so much as caught wind of Sakura engaged in something so unladylike as combat training—Sakura didn't want to think of the possibilities.

She could wait by the door until Ino got home. Sakura sucked with annoyance on her lower lip. Ino wouldn't be returning to their apartment until late. Actually, Ino might not bother to return at all today if her lazy boyfriend had anything to say about it. And Sakura wasn't patient enough to wait for her in any case.

That left Sakura with one final, painfully bitter option—return to the scene of her latest humiliation to retrieve her keys.

Barring, of course, the recent humiliation of being confounded by her own front door.

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The day had begun well enough, no change in the wind signaling her impending doom. Sakura had been looking forward to her day off all week: she had a salon appointment to trim up the dead ends on her bob, and was seriously considering a facial to help her unwind. Then she would go to the market and pick up a few things to make a delicious dinner, then maybe she'd visit her parents—maybe not. She wanted to de-stress. Definitely no visiting her parents today. Then she'd stop by the hospital to be absolutely sure no one needed her help. Taking a day off was never particularly easy for Sakura.

On her way to the salon, however, she'd been sidetracked by a certain Hyuuga, nervously chewing her lip across the block from a certain ramen stand. The determined look in her eye, however, belied her nervous posturing: she seemed to be gearing herself up for something.

"Hi, Hinata," Sakura chirped pleasantly. "What's up?"

Hinata started at Sakura's voice, her pale eyes going wide in fear. Hinata smiled faintly, however, when she recognized Sakura.

"Oh, hello, Sakura…n-n-nothing much. How are you t-today?" A faint blush tinted her cheeks and she looked shyly at her sandals; her aura of resolve was crumbling quickly.

"I'm okay." Sakura scanned the scene around her, looking for the source of Hinata's distress—a pair of broad shoulders supporting a head of spiky blond hair seemed the obvious answer. Naruto Uzumaki was just leaving the ramen stand and waved at the two women enthusiastically, obliviously.

"Hey, Sakura, hey, Hinata! Nice weather we're having today, huh?"

Sakura cast a quizzical glance at Hinata, whose blush deepened. To each their own, she supposed—but still. As dear a friend as Naruto was to her, Sakura couldn't imagine what Hinata found romantically attractive about him.

Then it clicked. Hinata had been steeling up to approach finally Naruto, a day practically the entire village had been waiting for since the chuunin exams eight years ago, and Sakura ruined the moment. Though the shy Hyuuga heiress had grown significantly bolder in the past eight years, she was still fragile when it came to matters of the heart. Sakura groaned inwardly. She'd better remedy the situation, and quickly.

"Hey, Naruto! Wait up!" Sakura grabbed Hinata by her pale wrist and dragged her down the street at a brisk trot towards Naruto's tall form. "Hinata and I were wondering if you wanted to go shopping with us this afternoon. We were looking for some new combat gear and wanted your opinion." Oh, brilliant, Uzumaki was sure to love shopping as much as the next man. "I'll buy you some new kunai for your trouble," she continued in an effort to sweeten the deal.

Naruto's blue eyes widened. "Gee, really? Yeah, of course, Sakura, I'd love to help you guys out." He beamed brightly, his chest swelled a little with pride. "I do have quite the extensive knowledge of combat gear. It's good you thought to ask me. What are you two ladies looking for?" He turned his bright eyes to Hinata questioningly.

Hinata fidgeted shyly in Sakura's grasp, her face about as red as a cherry. "Oh, uhm…uhm…" Sakura pondered the adorable couple they were going to make. This was so great! She was a hero.

"Mostly medical supplies, wasn't it, cousin?" A cool voice cut deep into Sakura's reverie. "Something Haruno here would be far better suited to help her with than you, Uzumaki."

Sakura felt Hinata tense up even more under her grip, but neither turned to meet the steely gaze they both felt piercing their backs. Naruto, however, threw Sakura a slightly exasperated glance. "I don't know anything useful about medical supplies, Sakura, I thought you wanted to look for something interesting!"

"Medical supplies are perfectly interesting when they're saving your life, idiot!" came her quick retort, the heat of Neji Hyuuga's gaze bringing her short temper to boil.

"S-Sakura, maybe we should g-go shopping another time." Hinata's voice was so quiet Sakura had to lean in to catch her words, and Hinata took advantage of the moment to recover her hand, in order to fidget with her fingers.

Naruto looked deeply apologetic, "Nah, Hinata, I don't mind carrying your bags or something while you an Sakura shop for—for—medical stuff…" He'd obviously been looking for a more descriptive word, and his hand grasped thoughtfully at the air as thought it was physically eluding him. Hinata ducked carefully back from his fingertips.

Neji's hand crept protectively onto his cousin's shoulder and pulled her closer to him, out of Naruto's grasp. "I also would like to accompany you on your shopping excursion today. Perhaps then we can discuss some business." His voice was impassive, but his eyes, which had finally caught hold of Sakura's gaze, were hard and irritated.

Sakura felt her mouth go dry. That penetrating gaze—it became clear what made Neji Hyuuga such an effective ANBU captain. He radiated power. However, Sakura would not let herself be cowed so easily.

"You can carry my bags, Hyuuga," she quipped, turning on her heel toward the shopping district.

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And, being the brilliant author I am, I have left you, the reader, in the middle of Sakura's flashback sequence, and I didn't even inform you how her keys went missing. Well, that problem should be resolved at the end of the second chapter. Again, any critiques will be deeply appreciated. 


	2. Chapter 2

Chapter Two

"Can I tuck this scroll in someplace?" Sakura asked, a mischievous light in her eyes. Neji looked like a human tower, her various medical scrolls and supplies easily obscuring that frustrating, piercing gaze. He only grunted in response, shifting the merchandise in an effort to get a hand free. Amazingly, he managed, and Sakura lobbed the scroll thoughtlessly toward his waiting hand. She was mildly impressed when he caught it, and maintained his balance, and didn't drop anything, but she didn't show it: no need to encourage that ego. She turned her eyes instead to look for her friends.

Naruto and Hinata were a few stalls away, examining acupuncture needles. Naturo had a package under his arm and a bag in one hand, and was leaning in very close to look over Hinata's shoulder. Hinata was blushing faintly, then furiously as Naruto's free hand came to rest on her shoulder. He was, of course, oblivious to the effect he had on her.

"You shouldn't encourage it." Neji's voice was as hard as ever, much closer than Sakura had realized. She almost bumped into him when she turned to look at him.

"Why shouldn't I encourage her? She adores him." Sakura covered her sudden flustered state with irritation.

"And that adoration will only hurt her. They can never be together."

Sakura narrowed her leaf green eyes, "Why? Because he's not good enough for her? Because she's the Hyuuga heiress and he's…?" Her voice trailed off threateningly.

Neji rolled his eyes in irritation. "Because he doesn't notice her, and he will never notice her. Look at them." He nodded his head at the pair, Naruto practically breathing down Hinata's neck, all his attention focused on an acupuncture needle while Hinata seemed about to melt due to their proximity.

"A man who doesn't realize he can—do that to a woman with his presence…he's completely oblivious to her. Presently, the problem is that he will never notice her affection. However, if someone were ever so unwise as to point it out to him…" He paused for a moment, to reflect, and then continued "How can they be certain he wouldn't miss her other feelings in the future? How could one be certain he'd be gentle enough with my cousin's delicate heart? He has all the delicacy of an ox."

Sakura frowned and took some of her packages from Neji so she could look him properly in the eye. "And he has all the heart of a lion. Once he realizes how much she treasures him, he'll protect her heart with his life, Hyuuga." She spat out his name bitterly; he was so frustratingly judgmental. His only response was a non-committal "hnn".

"Hey, guys!" Naruto interjected, "Hinata and I were getting kinda hungry—wanna go get some ramen?"

"Naruto, didn't you have ramen for lunch? Three hours ago?" Sakura couldn't help but sound incredulous.

"Well, yeah…but Hinata didn't have any, and she said she'd like some." Hinata smiled faintly, her gaze barely drifting toward Naruto's hopeful face.

Neji snorted. "Did you brow-beat her into it?"

"No! I just happened to mention I was getting hungry! It was her idea!"

"Ramen d-does sound good, N-Neji."

"Hnn." Ever nonplussed, Neji turned to Sakura. "You have a lot of purchases here. I'll take these things to your apartment, and meet you at the ramen stand for dinner. I expect you to chaperone them properly."

Sakura stared at him. "They're not children."

Neji gathered back the packages Sakura had taken from him. "But she is the heiress to the Hyuuga clan. It would be unfitting for her to be alone with him. Your keys, Sakura."

She absently reached into a pocket, pulled out her front door key. She began to explain how to find her apartment, but he was already gone.

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Naruto was only on his third bowl of ramen by the time Neji arrived. Hinata was doggedly working on her first bowl, but her frequent blushing and stammering while attempting to make conversation hampered her efforts. Sakura herself was lazily pushing her noodles around in her bowl while counting passersby when Neji again appeared much closer than expected.

"Everyone enjoying themselves?" he asked, his voice coolly pleasant. He took a seat beside Hinata and nodded at the cook, who began the man's unspoken order. Sakura pondered absently if Neji was enough of a regular here to warrant the cook knowing his "usual", or if it was his impressive aura that made it hard to forget. Judging by Neji's small frown as he inspected the countertop—apparently, he'd touched something sticky—she guessed it was the latter.

Sakura wrinkled her nose slightly as she studied the ANBU captain. She had the distinct impression he felt too good for Ichiraku's, and for anyone who would dine there regularly. He was seriously high-and-mighty. She noticed his eyes flick over Naruto's hunched form, how he frowned all the more while watching the blond man devour his meal like a wolf, how his gaze narrowed as he examined Hinata's shy blush, how his eyes finally came to rest locked onto her own emerald gaze. Her look of irritation was quickly replaced by one of embarrassment when she realized he'd caught her staring.

"Is there something you wanted to say, Haruno?" Neji accepted his bowl of ramen with both hands from the cook, his face impassive. He tentatively blew on it, took a delicate bite. His eyes never left hers and she felt her blush growing by the moment.

"You have something in your teeth," she snapped, turning to her own bowl.

"Hnn." No reaction, of course, on the Hyuuga front. Her frustration was mounting.

Naruto, finally sated, leaned back in his chair and patted his stomach thoughtfully. "That was a great meal, huh, guys?" His sigh of content reverberated through the ramen stand and he grinned like a pleased cat. He cast a slitted gaze toward the shy woman seated beside him, and Sakura held her breath as her friend's face became very serious.

"Hey, uh…Hinata…."

Hinata turned, wide eyed, toward him, but found she could say nothing.

"I, uh…I had a real nice time today…"

Hinata only nodded in agreement.

Naruto paused for a moment, then continued in a low voice. "So…you wanna catch a movie or something sometime?" He had turned to face her now, his gaze locked single-mindedly on her own. Had he looked just past her, he would have caught the daggers Neji was glaring at him, but for just one moment the world around Hinata and Naruto had stopped completely. Thankfully, Sakura remained in the present, and slipped past the duo to guide Neji away before he could throttle someone.

"I think we should let them have a little privacy, don't you?" She smiled innocently at him as she led him around the corner from the ramen stand. Neji was clearly furious—she could feel how tense he was under her grip, and she smirked inwardly as his right eye twitched, almost imperceptibly.

She did jump a little when the chopsticks he'd been holding snapped in two.

"This is all your fault, you—you—" Neji apparently had no word for what he was feeling, or thought better of saying it. After a momentary pause to collect himself, he turned coolly toward Sakura, but despite his composure she could tell he was inches from murder.

"Haruno, how could you encourage them while I was away? Didn't I make it clear to you that it was very unwise?" His eyes were closed, and his tone dripped with contempt, like a schoolmaster to a foolish student.

"Oh, shove it, Hyuuga, I didn't do anything. Naruto is apparently more in tune to her feelings than you thought." Sakura snorted with frustration while Neji's jaw clenched.

"Yes, of course, that's why he had the foresight to plan things out so romantically, so my little cousin would never forget the moment her dreams came true—sitting on a sticky barstool at Ichiraku's with noodles hanging out of her mouth like some flighty, two-bit teenager. That, Sakura, was a whim, his fleeting fancy. Do you think he plans to stick it out with her? Do you think he plans to be with her for more than just their next date? Do you think he'll even plan their next date? Do you think he plans at all?"

Sakura was slightly shocked by the usually stoic Hyuuga's outburst—both because it was an outburst and because it seemed he'd given this careful consideration.

Neji continued his tirade. "My cousin needs, no, she deserves someone who gives her more consideration than that. She deserves a man who is going to think things through, be meticulous, know what he wants—not someone who asks her out on a whim."

Sakura lowered her gaze slowly to study the broken chopsticks still clenched in Neji's fist, splinters bristling from his fingertips. "Don't forget, Hyuuga, that your cousin adores him—she may equally adore his spontaneity. Maybe she wants someone who will ask her out on the spur of the moment, someone who doesn't have a plan and is open to his whims." A gentle smile crossed her face as she thought about the couple they'd left at the ramen stand, the way Naruto's playful nature was sure to sweep up timid Hinata into a whirlwind romance—and for a moment she could see where Neji was coming from. She sucked on her teeth in annoyance, and considered how to reassure him.

"Hyuuga, Naruto will take good care of your cousin. He may be less…" she groped for an appropriate word, "meticulous than you, but he's fiercely loyal. You know I can attest to that." Sakura took Neji's hand in her own to remove the splintered chopsticks, which she tossed casually aside while brushing slivers off his palm and fingers. She went into medic mode at the sight of a particularly nasty splinter in his thumb. She picked at it softly; when it began to bleed he made no sound. "When he realizes his feelings for Hinata, he will never let her go."

Neji remained silent and unmoving while Sakura picked at his splinter. He didn't even noticeably tense when, in frustration, she took his thumb to her mouth to suck on it in hopes of loosening the splinter. She worked on his thumb pad with her tongue, a bit roughly, until she could tell it had begun to work itself out.

It was at that moment that Neji jumped, as if suddenly waking up, and wrenched his hand away from Sakura. He cradled it to his stomach like a wounded animal, and stared at her with strangely accusing eyes. She felt the heat of her blush creep up her neck to her hairline. Had she just been—oh, she was just going to die.

"I need to go inform my uncle about what has transpired between my cousin and Uzumaki this afternoon." His voice was sharp and curt and his chin was held very high. "I will inform him about your opinion regarding Uzumaki's loyalty. I hope, for his sake, that it is enough."

Sakura couldn't bring herself to say anything, and, after another moment of tense silence, she turned and fled home. It was when she arrived that she realized Neji had never returned her key.

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That settled it. There was no way she could face Neji again that evening, or probably for the rest of the week, so she'd just climb up to her balcony. She was an elite kunoichi after all; surely she could sneak past some half-blind old biddy's window.

Unfortunately, Mrs. Maehashi was knitting on her balcony that evening enjoying the sunset. Sakura steeled herself for the old woman's outraged bellow, and tried to hurry her way up to the next story, but Mrs. Maehashi wasn't going to let her get by that easily.

"Miss Haruno! You get over here!" The woman had a voice like a bagpipe, honestly. Wheezy and in about six grating pitches at once.

Sakura dropped gently onto the old woman's balcony, looking entirely apologetic. "I'm sorry, Mrs. Maehashi, but I've locked myself out of my apartment and Ino isn't home right now…"

"Oh, hush, hush, I know all about that. Some nice young man came up that way about ten minutes ago and handed me your key." Mrs. Maehashi dangled Sakura's key from its cherry blossom key chain, a mischievous look in her old wrinkled eyes. "Who was he?"

Sakura felt her cheeks color slightly, but swallowed her embarrassment away. "No one, really, Mrs. Maehashi, ma'am."

"No one? Hmm…then I guess you don't want to read this note." Tossing the keys at Sakura carelessly, the old woman picked up a sealed letter from under her glass of lemonade and smirked evilly. "Too bad, 'no one' is such a handsome, polite young man. ANBU, by the looks of it."

Sakura snatched at the letter—how could such an old woman have such fast reflexes? "His name is Neji Hyuuga, and yes, he's an ANBU captain."

Mrs. Maehashi cackled in delight. "Hyuuga! Good for you, Sakura, I knew you wouldn't be a disappointment." Turning to her very lazy Persian cat, she said, "Come on, Cupcake, let's get you that can of tuna now."

Sakura was wracked with curiosity as she fled up to the safety of her own balcony. She had left the sliding glass door unlocked after all, and slipped inside. She refused to notice how neatly Neji had lined up all of her scrolls and packages in the living room as she sank into the sofa. It took her several minutes to compose herself enough to dare to look at Neji's note to her—and just as she broke the seal, she heard Ino's key click in the lock.

"Sakura, what are all these scorch marks on our doorknob?" Ino slinked confidently into the living room; Sakura still marveled at how her roommate could make even carrying groceries look like an act of seduction. Her lazy boyfriend wasn't far behind, and it was he that caught Sakura trying to hide the note between the sofa cushions.

"What's that?" Shikamaru nodded in Sakura's guilty direction.

"Oh. My. God. Sakura's got a secret admirer." Ino, of course, jumped to the worst conclusion possible. Actually, no, Sakura thought, the truth was for once far worse than Ino could have imagined upon her. Ino fished the note out from Sakura's makeshift hiding spot, and tore it open. Her bright eyes narrowed impishly as she began to read aloud, affecting a stuffy accent to do so.

"Haruno—I must apologize for my rude behavior today, I never should have spoken to you so harshly, nor should I have lost my temper. If it would please you, I would like to invite you to dinner in order to make amends. I will call on you Wednesday at five. Most sincerely—" Ino's voice trailed off as her eyes grew wider and wider. After a moment's silence, she whipped her head around to stare Sakura down. For her part, Sakura tried to disappear into the corner of the sofa.

Shikamaru rolled his eyes and put his fingers in his ears to drown out a banshee's shriek of delight.

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Thank you, my kind reviewers! I made this next chapter a bit longer…I do hope you enjoy it! Once again, any suggestions are greatly appreciated. 


	3. Chapter 3

Chapter 3

"Sakura, quit complaining." Ino pouted disarmingly as her friend fussed with the straps on the dress she'd loaned her. It had been Ino's bright idea to have Shikamaru ask Neji where he planned to take Sakura, in order that Ino could dress her accordingly. Unfortunately, Shikamaru was somewhat uncooperative, and Neji had been even more uncooperative. Apparently, he'd only told Shikamaru, "Someplace nice", and Shikamaru hadn't asked for details. Sakura could tell Ino was becoming frustrated with her own lack of cooperation, but it wasn't stopping her from griping.

"Are you sure this is necessary?" Sakura whined, shrinking away from Ino's hand and one last bobby pin. "Nice could mean…I don't know, a café. I'll be overdressed."

Ino leveled an incredulous glare at her friend. "Sakura, seriously. This is Neji Hyuuga we're talking about. When he says nice, he means jaw-droppingly amazing. Now hold still."

Ino teased Sakura's pink bob into a semblance of something sophisticated, and stood back to admire her workmanship. Sakura wore a silky, pale champagne gown that hit just above the knee. The ruby red brocade sash at an empire waistline emphasized just how lithe Sakura truly was, and the low heeled, scarlet satin sandals with their charming ankle straps made her pale legs look a mile long. Even Sakura had to pause to admire her reflection.

Sakura had spent the past five days trying vehemently to convince those around her that she was in fact not going on a real date with Neji Hyuuga—to almost no avail. Ino was too thrilled at the idea of Sakura going out on a date, with anyone, to hear otherwise; Mrs. Maehashi seemed to think she could live vicariously through Sakura and kept telling her she'd better bring him home afterward; Tsunade had said very little, though her amused smirk communicated volumes; even Shikamaru seemed skeptical about her excuse that he'd only asked her out for the sake of apologizing.

"He doesn't do it this way, Haruno. Quit being stubborn," Shikamaru had answered sedately from his place stretched out on the sofa, watching the proceedings. His response worried Sakura the most: Shikamaru spent a good deal of time working with Neji as they were frequently on the same team for missions. He would know what he's talking about. Sakura shuddered slightly as she forced the thought to the edges of her mind.

"Shikamaru! Stop staring at Sakura's legs!"

"I wasn't staring…I was just looking," he responded nonchalantly, ignoring the pillow his girlfriend threw his way. Sakura's poisonous glare, however, convinced him to scrutinize the clouds outside the window. She didn't bother to ask what he muttered under his breath as he turned away.

4:45, she had fifteen minutes to find some means of escape. She tapped her toe, noticed the nail polish was already chipped and cursed inwardly. Ino also had noticed, and had dashed back to the bathroom to get the polish for a quick touch-up, when someone knocked sharply at their door. She should have expected he'd be early.

Sakura stared pathetically in Ino's direction. Ino shouted at her from the bathroom to open the damn door. Shikamaru sighed from his spot on the couch; he had no plans to move. Sakura finally bolted toward the bathroom, locking the door behind her. Seated on the edge of the bathtub, she pleaded silently with Ino to just kill her now. Ino rolled her eyes with annoyance.

"Forehead, you really need to loosen up. It's just a date. You could use a little bit of fun every now and again." Ino knelt down to touch up the nail polish on Sakura's big toe. The women heard a second sharp knock, and Ino shouted for Shikamaru to let him in. There was a protracted sigh from the living room and the sound of heavy feet hitting the floor.

"They're in the bathroom. Woman stuff," Shikamaru stated blandly; Sakura could only imagine how irritated he was to have been forced up off the sofa. She suddenly remembered the cereal bowl from breakfast on the coffee table; her forehead knotted with worry as she thought how disgusted Neji must be at that sight.

Ino snapped her fingers in front of Sakura's dazed face. "You're going to go, and you're going to have a great time with him, okay? He's just a human being." When Sakura still stared at her dismally, Ino stood up and crossed her arms. "Sakura Haruno, you can not sit there and tell me that no little part of yourself is not excited to go on a real live date with a man who is not one of your team members, with a man who isn't going to treat you like a little sister. When was the last time that happened? Oh! I remember, when I forced you on that double date Chouji when Shikamaru and I first started dating."

Sakura's eyes darken slightly: that was a low blow. Sure, her love life might be a bit stale—but she was usually far too busy to be troubled by it. Still, there were some evenings where it might be nice to have someone to kiss goodnight. And if she was going to kiss someone goodnight, she could do much worse than ANBU Captain Hyuuga. He was really rather handsome. A faint smile graced her lips at the thought, and that was all the encouragement Ino needed to toss her out of the bathroom, locking the door behind her. Much to Sakura's relief, Ino had decided against butting in.

Shikamaru had resumed his place on the sofa, where he apparently had decided to take a nap. Neji was perched carefully on an armchair, looking very uncomfortable. Sakura only had a split second to size him up before he rose politely to greet her; with his practiced bow, all of his discomfort seemed to dissipate. She couldn't help but relax slightly when she saw his outfit was also slightly more dressy than usual; in place of his traditional style robes, he wore a pair of dark chocolate brown trousers, a subdued lavender button down that brought out his eyes, and a pale khaki sport coat. His hair was loose, and unsurprisingly elegant. In his hand was a bouquet of bright pink lilies, from the Yamanaka flower shop. Ino had neglected to mention that. He looked striking, dressed so sharply, so differently. He hadn't forgone his forehead protector, however. Somehow the sight of it brought another slightly wistful smile to Sakura's face. Neji caught that smile and his pale eyes dropped rapidly to her feet.

Apparently that wasn't such a good idea. Sakura's smile grew into a smirk as she watched his eyes slowly gravitate up her legs, and then almost imperceptibly widen with a start as he realized what he was doing. After a moment they finally settled on a spot just over her left shoulder and he relaxed again.

"Thank you for inviting me out tonight," she said quietly, trying to hide her amusement at his behavior.

He nodded, and apparently she would get no other response. Shikamaru's nose whistled. Sakura eyed the flowers expectantly.

"Ah, these are for you." Neji offered the lilies to her very respectfully. "Ino said you would like them."

"I do, thank you. Let me go get a vase," she replied, carrying the flowers to the kitchen. "Please, make yourself at home. It'll be just a second."

Neji perched himself on the edge of the armchair again, definitely not at home. She watched him through the kitchen pass through, and smiled as he made a slightly annoyed face at a snoring Shikamaru. "So, where are we going tonight?" she called pleasantly over the sound of water running.

"The Cliffhouse. You like seafood, I hope." It was more of a statement than a question, and it irked Sakura to no end.

"And if I don't?"

"I already made reservations. It's a very nice restaurant."

"But if I don't like seafood."

He met her challenging stare through the pass through, and looked vaguely irritated. "This is ridiculous. You do like seafood."

"How do you know that?" She narrowed her eyes. "You've never asked me what I like."

"You had shrimp in your ramen, Haruno. You obviously like seafood."

Well, he had her there; she had eaten seafood ramen during their last meal together. She hadn't expected him to notice. She put the flowers in a nice vase and placed them in the pass through directly between Neji and herself, earning a quick hidden moment to pout.

"Shall we be going, then?" He had already risen to leave and was pulling his shoes back on by the time she reentered the living room. She absently wondered if he bought those shoes himself; she couldn't picture Naruto, or Sai, or, god forbid, Kakashi, ever wearing anything so nice just to take her out to dinner. They were a buttery soft, supple pair of tan leather shoes with an elongated square toe and buckle closures. He straightened up and offered her a slightly expectant hand.

Sakura looked at him sideways, very suspicious. Did he expect her to hold his hand? They were just going out on one date—it's not like they were an item or something. She hadn't expected the reserved man to be so touchy, but, carefully, slowly, she reached her pale hand out towards his larger one. Her mouth went dry as his pale eyes locked onto her emerald ones.

He pulled it back slightly, an eyebrow just barely raised. "May I help you with your coat?"

"Oh! Coat! Let me grab it…" Ino had left it for her on the couch; Shikamaru was now using it as a pillow. She tugged it out from underneath him, and he groaned with annoyance as she woke him. Without comment Neji dutifully helped her into it, his fingers gently running over her neck to loosen the tendrils of hair that had gotten trapped beneath her collar. Sakura also had no comment to make; she gamely ignored the goose bumps on her arms.

As the pair left the apartment, the lock clicking shut behind them, they discreetly ignored Ino's final squeal of delight.

"Forehead, you're going to tell me all about this later!"

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The Cliffhouse, contrary to what one might expect, was not perched on a cliff. Instead, it was on the ground floor of a recently renovated building in the old district of town. Neji had arranged for a table for four by the front window where they could watch passersby on the street. Sakura looked at him questioningly when she saw the extra place settings, but his face remained impassive. After taking their coats, the waiter asked them if they would have anything to drink, or would prefer to wait to order until the rest of their party arrived.

"They should be here soon, we'll wait," Neji said, dismissing the waiter coolly, who left the wine list on the table. Neji picked it up to study it.

"Who's coming?" Sakura demanded, suddenly put off at the thought that her date was going to be interrupted. Not date. Apology dinner. Just dinner. She ground her teeth slightly.

"I thought it would be a good opportunity to examine Uzumaki's response to my cousin, in a more formal setting. Besides, I do still have to chaperone them until my uncle makes his final decision." Neji decided on a wine, offered the list to Sakura. "I recommend this Sauvignon Blanc here, it's particularly good with seafood. Of course, if you don't want seafood, I'd suggest this Pinot Noir."

Sakura wasn't entirely sure if he was teasing her, but he didn't show any hint of a smile. "I suppose I'll choose the Pinot Noir, then."

"Hnn." He was smirking, a little. He had been teasing her. She had never expected him to make a joke—it had never occurred to her he could.

"Hey, Sakura! Good to see you!" Naruto had arrived, dressed surprisingly smartly, with Hinata on the crook of his arm. Sakura shrunk into her seat as she saw the stares the restaurant patrons were shooting the loud blond—so much for making a good impression. Neji seemed to be thinking the same thing, but Hinata, despite her heavy blushing, looked radiant. No one could deny that. Naruto escorted her to the table before the waiter could even help them, and very politely helped her with her coat and chair.

Sakura noted that Neji seemed at least a little impressed by that action; his frown toward Naruto softened slightly.

"Man, I'm starving! Did you guys order already? Does this place serve ramen?" Neji's eyes hardened again at the blond man's ramblings and looked out the window.

"N-no, Naruto, just seafood."

"Seafood! Hey, Hinata, want to hear a joke?"

"O-okay…"

"Ah…I'll have to wait until the food gets here."

Sakura shot Naruto a warning glance: he wouldn't dare. Naruto seemed honestly confused, and looked down at Hinata, who met his eyes with a gentle smile. The frustrated waiter appeared to take their orders. While even Sakura ended up settling for grilled salmon, Naruto asked him about ten times if he was really, really sure they had no ramen. The waiter left the table even more frustrated.

"Good going, Naruto, now he's going to spit in your food," Sakura chided. Hinata giggled a little at Naruto's disgusted face. Neji continued to stare out the window listlessly. He wasn't being a very good chaperone—nor was he being a particularly good date.

"So, how have the two of you been? Did you go see that movie after all?" Sakura leaned forward across the table to get a better look at Hinata and Naruto.

"Huh? Oh, yeah, we saw one that night." Naruto turned from studying Hinata's face to answer her. Sakura was a bit startled by the intensity in his eyes, and even more startled when his large, rough hand reached up to cover Hinata's small pale one.

Neji cleared his throat, but Naruto's hand didn't move. It seemed he had been paying attention. Neji didn't press the point, took a sip of his wine. "What did you go see?"

"Oh, that new action thing, with the guy and the secret agent and that super diamond, or something. I dunno, it was kinda long, and the fight scenes were terrible." Naruto traced his fingers through the fog on the side of his glass of beer, drawing a crude smiley face.

Neji raised his eyebrow, looking pointedly at his cousin. "And what did you think?"

"I…w-well, the lead act-actor was pretty g-good looking." Hinata cast a soft glance at Naruto, who cocked his head to the side thoughtfully.

"He was that good looking, Hinata?" Naruto seemed to be pondering the movie star. "He seemed sort of old to me."

"N-no…he's not t-too old. And I liked his…his blue eyes. He seemed fr-friendly and genuine."

Naruto seemed to wrack his brains for just a moment. "Hinata, his eyes were brown."

"No, th-they were a bright blue. I spent a g-good deal of time st-studying them." Sakura was almost lying on the table to hear what Hinata was saying. Naruto himself was leaned in close to catch the shy woman's voice, and at her last statement, a slow smile of realization broke over his face.

"Oh, that actor…well, I would like to say, I think the leading lady was fiine."

Sakura had to hold back a chuckle at Neji's sudden incredulous stare. Neither had really expected to witness Naruto and Hinata openly flirting—somehow Sakura assumed Hinata would always remain the blushing, stammering girl, and Naruto, the loud-mouthed, oblivious boy. Technically, Hinata was still stammering, and Naruto was still loud-mouthed, but who was counting?

Sakura cast her eyes to her own "date", and was only a little surprised to see his white-knuckled fist locked around his butter knife. It amused her to consider how protective he'd grown over the years regarding his young cousin, but she couldn't have him making a scene, so she delicately placed her hand on top of his, loosening his fingers from around the knife. It clattered harshly to the table, bringing Neji's focus onto her.

Once again she felt her mouth go dry as their eyes connected. His hand turned so he could grasp the tips of her fingers, just for a moment, and then he drew away. The waiter had arrived with their dinners.

Sakura shuddered to notice that Neji's eyes rarely met her own for the rest of the meal, but when they radiated something ferocious, almost deadly.

* * *

Another chapter, hey! I'm trying to update on 5 day intervals, I figure that gives me enough time to polish and edit the things I write down feverishly in the middle of the night. Other notes: Thank you again to all my reviewers! I can't say enough wonderful things about how encouraging you are. Additionally, if you would like to see my idea of what these date outfits look like you can hop on over to my deviantart account (it's listed under "home page" on my author's page) and browse under scraps. Thank you again! 


	4. Chapter 4

Chapter Four

"What do you mean you didn't arrange a second date, Forehead? I can't believe what a total moron you are!" Ino was busily pummeling her with a pillow as Sakura tried to hide under the covers of her bed. It was late, and Sakura really wanted to sleep, but Ino had waited up to hear all about the date, and she wasn't giving up now.

"He didn't ask! And, I don't know, it was so awkward!" For the remainder of their evening, she'd mostly listened, and occasionally chimed in, to Naruto and Hinata's conversation. Neji had said very little, nothing, actually, if grunting didn't count as talking.

"Well, that's no fun." Ino's barrage of pillows finally relented as she settled down to pout like a child on Sakura's bed. Sakura peeked out from under the covers with a sigh.

"Sorry I couldn't make my night more interesting for you," she replied dejectedly. "I'm sure it's all my fault—I must be an awful date."

"That's entirely possible." Ino sucked thoughtfully on her lower lip for a moment, and then shook her head. "No, no. The problem is, Sakura, Hinata and Naruto were there. They're probably show-stealers. Neji Hyuuga, on the other hand, is very reserved—he'll never be as obvious as Naruto. What was he like before they got there?"

"He…he was teasing me a little." Sakura wasn't entirely sure where Ino was going with this. "And then afterwards, he just sort of glared."

"Ah-ha! See? Naruto is the problem!"

Sakura looked sideways at Ino, waiting for her to continue.

"You see, Sakura, Neji is all about subtlety and finesse, whereas Naruto is—well, you know. Loud. Obvious. It'd be hard for someone trying to be subtle to really shine around Naruto. Why do you think I made you and Chouji go on that double date in the first place? Because you would just sit there and be awkward while I worked all my charms on Shikamaru." Ino paused for a moment, smirking. It really had been a disastrous situation, and Ino still liked to tease her about it. "Oh, god, Sakura, you are probably one of the most boring dates in the world! Chouji complained so much afterwards, he made me swear never to make him go out with you again!"

"Ino!"

"Right, right, sorry. So. A plan." Ino pursed her lips in concentration. "He has a plan, so we need a counter-plan."

Sakura sighed and pulled the covers back up over her head. "I'm sure he abandoned his plan, what with how terrible a date I am and all."

"Shut up and quit feeling so sorry for yourself, Forehead." Ino pulled down the covers and smacked her again with the pillow to punctuate her words. "It wasn't your fault his plan went off track; he apparently didn't account for what a loud-mouth Naruto is. No, all we need to do is nudge his plan back on track."

Sakura rolled onto her side to face Ino, her eyes serious. "How can we be so sure he even has a plan, Ino? You say it like it's a sure thing…"

Ino patted Sakura's head like she was a child. "Forehead, just trust me for once." Then she turned to the door to shout for Shikamaru.

It took him a few minutes of Ino's shouting to respond, but he finally appeared, bleary eyed and groggy at Sakura's bedroom door. "What do you want, woman? I was asleep…" He yawned as he leaned heavily on the doorjamb.

"Shika, honey, can you help out for a second…?" Ino slinked off the bed and over to her boyfriend's exhausted frame. She snaked one arm slowly around his waist, bringing her other hand to trace little circles on his chest. Shikamaru's eyes narrowed suspiciously, but he was clearly more awake.

"We need to help Sakura get Hyuuga's grand plan back on track."

Shikamaru rolled his eyes. "No way. I'm not meddling in his affairs."

Ino pouted very convincingly, leaning into Shikamaru slightly and pressing a small line of kisses along his jaw. "Pretty please? I'll make it up to you…"

"Dammit, woman, I'll help already!" He pushed past her roughly and pulled up Sakura's desk chair, seating himself so as to glare at Sakura harshly. He sighed, scratched at his head, and began to think. After just a handful of seconds, he leaned back in the chair and nodded. "Okay. Sakura, first off, I have to know if you are genuinely interested in pursuing a relationship with Hyuuga."

Sakura was taken aback—was she genuinely interested in—how did she get roped into this again? Ino, who had taken her place on the other side of the bed, quickly reminded Sakura with a pat on her back.

"Of course she is, this is Neji Hyuuga we're talking about."

"Ino, I wasn't asking for your opinion, I want to know how Sakura feels."

Sakura bit her lip, her eyebrows knitted together intently. "Mmm…" Why shouldn't she be interested? Neji Hyuuga was an ANBU captain; he came from a good family—he was their prodigy child, as well; he had good manners; he was really quite handsome—and yet, did she really want to get involved with him? She didn't know him very well, and he seemed rather uptight. And somewhat boring. And quite high and mighty. And definitely irritating.

"Well…I should probably get to know him first."

Shikamaru looked indifferent to her answer, but nodded gruffly. "Then you should seek him out, in casual social situations."

"Shika, you're so smart," Ino interrupted with a lazy purr.

"Will you let me finish, first?"

"Mmhmmm…"

"Ino, you're making me a little uncomfortable."

"Oh, sorry, Sakura. It's just that—"

"So seek him out in casual situations," Shikamaru interrupted Ino before she could continue her train of thought. "Tend to him at the hospital if he happens to come in, say hi to him if you see him at a book store, help him pick out vegetables if he's grocery shopping."

"Doesn't he have servants to do his grocery shopping?" Ino always perked up at the thought of having servants.

"He likes to pick out his own vegetables whenever possible. He's picky. Is this making sense, Sakura?"

"Yeah. Hey, how picky is he?"

"Pretty picky. But that's not important to our plan. The key thing you have to remember is that Hyuuga will get suspicious if it doesn't seem casual—so act as natural as possible."

"Natural, got it—natural how?" Sakura was busy taking mental notes. Since when did Shikamaru get to know so much about dating anyhow?

"Don't act out of character. For instance, avoid Ino's advice." He smirked faintly at his girlfriend. "She'll probably tell you to be casually touchy, reach out and stroke his hair or fix his collar or something. Well, don't—not unless you actually want to. Remember that he's good at reading people, and he'll pick it up pretty quickly if you're being fake."

"But Sakura, who doesn't want to reach out and stroke his hair? It's so silky looking. You're going to have to tell me if it really does feel like silk." Ino was pouting just a little, her eyes growing heavy with sleep. "You know, Shikamaru, it wouldn't hurt you to use a little conditioner now and then."

"Can we stay focused? You're such a pain, sometimes." Shikamaru gingerly put his fingers to his bristly ponytail, but continued. "I would also suggest you don't take Lee's advice, if he chooses to give it to you, which I think he will."

"What will he advise…?" Sakura was beginning to feel the rush of claustrophobia, for some reason she couldn't pinpoint entirely.

"Bad ideas, is what. Just ignore him." Shikamaru was staring past her now, at Ino, who grew sleepier by the minute. She snuggled into one of Sakura's pillows with a pleasant sigh. "Other than that…the only advice I can give is be patient." He slipped out of his chair, didn't bother to return it to the desk, as he crept around to poke Ino.

"Just be patient? That's it?" Sakura hated to be patient.

Shikamaru grunted in response—Ino grunted in irritation at his prodding. Sakura rolled her eyes and pushed Ino toward the edge of her bed with her foot, eliciting a pouty whine from the blonde.

"Shiika…carry me to bed?"

"Troublesome woman." But he scooped her up to take her out of the room, pausing at the door only to remind Sakura: "Patience."

Sakura didn't like the sound of that one bit.

--------------

Sakura really hadn't expected to see the Hyuuga for the next week, at least—Naruto had commented that they would be going on a short mission together within a few days and she expected they would need to plan and organize. However the very next day, on lunch break from her work at the clinic, she happened to see his tall form at the end of the block, just exiting the bookstore.

A week ago, she never would have thought to catch up with him, but she was slightly startled to find she'd broken into a trot and was quickly approaching his side.

"Hi, Neji! How are you today?" She almost winced—she hoped she hadn't been too informal.

"Oh, Haruno,"—perhaps she had been—"I'm fine, thank you. How are you today?" No flicker of emotion crossed his face, but he did shift his package to the side opposite her.

"I'm okay…I'm on my lunch break." She smiled pleasantly, feeling like a dolt. Why was that important? Was she inviting him to join her? Would he even like to come?

"Hnn." Apparently he had no interest in coming with her. They were walking right past the bistro she'd planned to eat at, but she found she didn't want to turn off just yet. Maybe he needed a little more coaxing.

"Have you eaten yet?"

"What? Oh, no." Neji seemed oddly lost in his thoughts, his mouth set in a grim line.

"Would you like to get something to eat with me?" How obvious did she have to be? Seriously, he was supposed to be a genius.

He stopped mid-stride to look at her, was very quiet, he studied her. She stared back at him, patiently as she could. After a moment, he replied with very precise enunciation. "You're asking me to dine with you."

"Technically to lunch with me."

"Don't play semantics, Haruno. After the awful time you had last night, you want me to come out to eat with you again." Neji's eyes were hard and very serious.

Sakura smirked without humor. "After the awful time you had, I can't imagine why you'd agree, but yes, I am asking you." Her smile grew softer as she continued. "I didn't have such an awful time, really. It was a lovely restaurant. I do love seafood."

His expression grew faintly exasperated at the sound of that, but he nodded his head. "Where were you planning to get lunch?"

-------------

Lunch was quiet, but Neji seemed far more relaxed than he had at dinner the previous night. Sakura even managed to draw a smirk out of him, teasing him about the cherry tomatoes he picked out of his salad.

"Picky, picky! What's the matter with them? Are they too green?" She plastered a wicked grin to her face.

"They are." It was a very faint smirk, but a smirk nonetheless, and it took the edge off his intense glare.

"So what can you tell me about this mission you're going on?" She thought the tomatoes looked good enough, and reached over to steal one of them. He pushed his plate a little closer to make them easier to reach.

"Not too much…I'll be gone about a week, though." His smirk had transformed back into a grim line of concentration.

"Where will you be headed?" Sakura leaned her head softly on her hand, examining Neji's austere countenance. He'd be so much more handsome, she mused, if he would only smile once in a while.

"You know I can't tell you that," he replied briefly.

"Ah." He wasn't much of a conversationalist, and he really wasn't trying. "These tomatoes aren't so bad, you should try them." She had to say something.

"Hnn." He sniffed slightly, but dutifully popped one into his mouth. His prompt grimace was priceless. "Haruno, you know nothing about tomatoes. That was disgusting."

She giggled a little. "You are picky."

"There's nothing wrong with having a refined palate." His tone had grown a little sullen and he shifted uncomfortably in his seat. They continued their lunch in silence for a few more minutes.

"So…what did you buy at the bookstore?"

Neji didn't respond, and she wasn't certain if he was ignoring her until she asked a second time and he said nothing.

"Neji Hyuuga, don't make me come over there and take it from you!"

"It's a medical book!" He spat out the words with frustration.

Sakura's eyes lit up—was he interested in medicine? Here was something they could talk about. "What book? Can I see it?"

"No, Haruno, it's mine." He was beginning to blush.

"Oh, come on…I want to see." Sakura hopped out of her chair and around the table to try and steal it from him. He shrunk away from her, one arm encircling his book protectively, the other fending her off. She pressed in against his arm, clawing one hand into his shoulder for leverage so the other could snake closer to the book. He grunted, pressing his elbow steadily against her ribcage to keep her at bay—it wasn't his intention to hurt her as much as to protect his privacy. Sakura, however, had no qualms about getting what she wanted, and when she couldn't get close enough that way, she put him in a headlock, grabbing a fistful of hair as she pulled him out of his chair. His hair was very silky, she'd have to remember to tell Ino.

"Dammit, Sakura!" He clutched the book close to his chest, trying his best to gently push her away. "I don't want to have to hurt you!"

"Oh, come on, Neji, it's just a book…" She chuckled as he squirmed uncomfortably. "You know if you do hurt me you'll feel guilty and show it to me anyway…"

"No, I'll just feel guilty—ow!! Stop that!"

"Sorry, your hair is just so silky…what kind of conditioner do you use?" His hair smelled wonderful as well. Faintly like honey and lavender. She resisted the urge to press her nose to it. "I bet you couldn't hurt me anyway," she teased playfully.

She suddenly found herself lying on her back on the bistro floor, Neji hovering at the edge of her field of vision. She really hadn't expected him to try and free himself that way. The book was no where to be seen, but a scrap of paper drifted softly through the air, and her hand snapped up to catch it.

It was his receipt.

* * *

Oooh, what book could he have bought? We'll find out next chapter! Thanks again to all my wonderful reviewers, you really and truly make my day. 


	5. Chapter 5

"Shirt, please."

"Hnn."

Sakura tapped her toe impatiently, waiting for her patient to disrobe. It was a hospital, for goodness sake; he had no reason to be so self-conscious. She'd seen people in far greater states of undress. And she was a medic. She was very professional.

Neji had turned his back to her to undress; Sakura found herself provided with a wonderful view of his muscular, sculpted back. His muscles rippled tantalizingly under his skin, and she pictured running her fingers over—she distracted herself by naming off the muscle groups. She was very professional, dammit. Very professional.

All disruptive imaginings were instantly pushed to the side when he turned to face her: his chest was covered with ugly red welts, little, spidery, purple veins tracing their way over his pecs down onto his flat stomach.

"Neji Hyuuga!" she clucked, leaning in close to examine the rash. "You mean to tell me you were going to go out on a mission like this?" Sakura put a cool hand to his skin, tracing some of the angry veins: she could feel the heat of infection rising from him.

Neji's eyes were downcast and he flinched away from her touch. "It's only a spider bite, Haruno…" He flinched again when she punched him in the arm.

"Only a spider bite? More like ten! What were you doing, rolling around in a nest of them?" She clucked at him through her teeth, and focused her chakra into her fingertips, tracing the course of the spiders' poison through his veins. She was just beginning to clear it out when Neji jumped back, knocking her hand away.

"Haruno…I'd like to ask for a different medic." He had her by the wrist, not letting her hand get closer to the bites. Her eyes narrowed dangerously. What did he think he was doing? She was the top medic at this hospital, next to Tsunade! Why would he want a different medic?

His eyebrows were knitted closely together. "Please, Haruno."

"No, Neji! Stop being so spoiled and relax. It'll only take a moment," she insisted, using a little of her inhuman strength to force her hand closer to his chest. When it was clear she wasn't going to give up, he let her wrist go with a sigh. It was clear, however, that he wasn't going to relax.

"So…you guys head out tomorrow morning?"

Neji sighed again, and looked down his nose to where Sakura's fingers were neutralizing the poison in his body. "Yes, tomorrow morning. Naruto has a big mouth, doesn't he?"

"Actually, no…Shikamaru was complaining about how early you three had to leave." Sakura smirked slightly, absentmindedly noting how perfectly delineated his muscle groups were. Perhaps sometime she'd ask him to help her study anatomy—her eyes snapped wide open as she reminded herself that she was a professional here, and he was her patient.

Neji was shifting uncomfortably under her ministrations, and when she stiffened at that latest train of thought he also jumped back.

"Does it hurt?" she asked, trying to cover her own discomfort.

"No…a little." He bit his lip. "It burns, a little."

"Ah…that's the poison being neutralized. It was destroying your nerve tissue, so…that's the feeling of the nerves waking back up." Sakura straightened up to look him in the eyes and pursed her lips together menacingly.

They watched each other in silence for a moment, Sakura trying to convey the depths of her irritation with him through her eyes, him looking impassive yet annoyed. Finally he sighed and looked away.

"I'm sorry, I should have come straight to you." He didn't sound like he meant it, but she would take his apology for the time being.

"You'd better, Neji."

She noticed he flinched when she said his name, but he turned to put his shirt on before she could shoot him another glare. He was getting ready to leave when he seemed to think of something. "Ah, Haruno…the guys and I are going out to the bars tonight as a goodbye sort of thing…it's not really my style, but…" He ended with a shrug.

She smiled faintly at him, reached over to straighten his shirt's collar. "Are you inviting me?"

"I'm just letting you know." He stiffened under her touch and backed away a little.

Sakura rolled her eyes with frustration: why couldn't he just make up his damn mind? "I'll see if I can make it."

He nodded gruffly and shut the door behind him politely as he left. Sakura sank onto the examining table, her fists clenched with rage and something else. She really needed to hit something.

-----------------

She could feel the sweat dripping down her neck, down her back, until it soaked into her chest bindings, which were clinging to her uncomfortably. She wasn't tired, yet, not even vaguely, but the day was muggy and the heat made her a little slow. Ino almost managed to land a blow to her ribs, but Sakura dodged out of the way, and bounded back several yards. She was ready for more, but Ino held up her hand.

"Let's break for water, Sakura," she chirped, "And you can tell me about your lunch date with a certain Mr. Hyuuga."

Sakura's face fell. "Who told you about that?"

Ino's face brightened mischievously. "I have my sources."

Sakura sighed, shrugged a little. "There's not much to tell. He's…very stoic." Then she had to laugh. "Ino, he's really just ridiculous. I can't imagine dating him. You should have seen how picky he was about tomatoes, of all things. And he refuses to get proper medical treatment—"

"Do you know any man who would choose to get proper medical treatment if he could just go home and lick his wounds like a dog?"

Ino had a point, but Sakura wouldn't be dissuaded. "And…he sends such mixed signals. He refuses to call me by my first name except when he's angry at me; he shies away from my touch when I'm trying to heal him, but throws me to the floor in the middle of a restaurant…"

Ino spluttered water all over Sakura, she'd been in mid-sip when she started coughing. "Threw you to the floor…? As in…?"

"WHAT? No! Not like that!" Sakura covered her face with her hands to hide her blush and to wipe away Ino's spit. "But then he asked for a new medic, just afterward. He didn't want me to touch him!"

Ino rolled her eyes. "Oh, please, Forehead, that's no kind of 'mixed signal'."

"How do you figure?"

"What, in the hospital, with you in your medic gear, probably bossing him around. I bet he was having naughty nurse thoughts about you and it was making him uncomfortable." Ino laughed raucously when Sakura began to blush. "And looks like someone was having naughty thoughts about her patient—tell me, did you get a good look at him in the buff?"

Sakura's face was bright red by now. "Just his chest. A spider bit him and it gave him this horrible rash. I diagnosed it after lunch. He was too embarrassed to go to the doctor, so he bought a book on the subject instead."

"But under the rash?" Undaunted by diversion tactics, Ino had leaned in close, her eyes sparkling playfully. Sakura blushed in response, and Ino laughed with glee. "Oh, I knew it! Oh, oh, poor Shikamaru, having to be on that mission with those two gods among men."

Sakura stared at her incredulously. "Are you talking about Naruto? Ino! I didn't know you thought he was attractive!" Hopefully she could still steer the subject away from the delectably attractive body of Neji Hyuuga.

Ino rolled her eyes. "Uh, yeah. Not that I'd ever do anything about it, though, especially not with him seeing Hinata now. She's probably one of those psycho possessive girlfriends."

Sakura slapped her lightly on the arm, laughing. "Ino, you shouldn't be so mean!"

"Ah, especially to the girl who's going to be your future clan leader, hmm?" Ino danced away laughing as Sakura glared ferociously. "Come on, Forehead, let's go to the baths to get out of this heat."

------------

The public baths were exceptionally crowded—Sakura and Ino weren't the only people interested in escaping the heat that day. Sakura slipped into the water up to her chin, and Ino soon followed suit after gently hinting that a couple young girls go find another way to spend their afternoon than listening to kunoichi gossip.

"I still don't see why you couldn't date him. I mean, he seems…dependable," Ino said with a sigh of relaxation.

"Hnn…yes, dependable. But, Ino, he's just not what I want."

Ino huffed with exasperation. "Well, what do you want, Forehead? You're running out of options unless you want to start dating civilians again. Remember how poorly that went?"

Sakura smiled wryly—apparently in the civilian world it wasn't normal for the woman to have ten times the strength of the man, and apparently that put more than a few men off. But then she frowned again. "Well, I don't really know…maybe…maybe I'm supposed to be like Tsunade and just never—you know. Get over…stuff." She sighed miserably and sank deeper into the water.

"Sakura! Don't you make me tell Lee you've given up on love! You want me to make him come lecture you? You know I will."

Sakura laughed at the slightly terrifying thought. "No, no, Ino! I just haven't found the right guy yet, that's all."

"Ah, and what qualities does this 'right guy' possess?" Ino's eyes narrowed, but Sakura decided to bury her suspicions for the moment. Talking helped her think.

"Well, for one thing, he's passionate—but not like Lee. You know, sort of a ferocious passion, the kind you can get swept up in."

"Like Hinata and Naruto."

"Yes!" Sakura slapped the surface of the water to punctuate her thought. "Just like that! And he has to be playful, too. And romantic. When I'm with him, we won't discuss missions and training and the best way to wrap a bandage, we'll talk about—us."

"I see. Us." Ino seemed faintly amused. Sakura splashed some water at her.

"I'm being serious here, pig!"

"Yes, yes, and so am I! I'm taking notes!"

"Oh…" Sakura continued her musings. "Well then, I guess the last thing would have to be that I find him handsome."

"Well-groomed?"

"I suppose—well, no, not necessarily. I mean, I want him to look like he's capable of surviving." How vague, but she knew Ino would know what she meant. Like how shinobi were meant to look, in her mind's eye; strong, for certain, yes, but maybe a little wild, feral, just underneath the veneer of civilization.

Ino made a face like she was solving really long division in her head, and then smiled brightly. "I've got it, Forehead. I know just the guy for you."

Sakura could only smirk with amusement. "Who is it now?"

Ino shook her head, looking mischievous. "Nuh-uh. You'll have to be patient. I'll invite him out to the bar with us tonight, and you'll have to figure out who it is. If I haven't missed my mark—and I don't think I have—you'll know just who I mean."

Hello, folks, your author here. I wanted to award a cookie to Poison's Ivy for guessing correctly! Hurray! And to everyone who suggested Neji might be following the path of one Kakashi Hatake…well, he might be somewhat OOC, but surely not that much. Tsk tsk! Other than that…whom do you suppose Ino means? I already know who it is, but I guess I will give more imaginary cookies to whichever reviewers guess right. Sorry that this chapter is a bit shorter than usual, but I am posting it early to make up for it. 3


	6. Chapter 6

Chapter Six

Bars were not Sakura's scene—she didn't like the smoke, for one thing, and she didn't like the attention having naturally pink hair brought when surrounded by drunks. She rarely had to pay for her drink, especially when accompanied by Ino, but she didn't like the overly familiar advances that came with those drinks. All in all, she found bars stuffy, smelly, and frustrating places: if she had her way, this goodbye party would have been set in the park, for a barbecue, and maybe a game of lawn bowling. That would have been fun, and everyone would have had to go home when it was too dark to see, and she could have gotten a decent night's sleep.

Of course, few shinobi would have agreed that this was a good way to celebrate. Maybe Chouji, who would have adored the barbecue, but he was away on a short mission. Maybe Shikamaru, who would have enjoyed the clouds, but he was too lazy to plan anything. Definitely not Ino, who really had taken charge of the whole thing. Absolutely not Naruto, who enjoyed getting trashed with his friends—it gave him a bit of leeway in pervy behavior—if he was drunk, was it really his fault?

Sakura smirked a little as she adjusted the strap on her sling back black heels. How would Hinata, who Sakura had never once seen in a bar, and who perhaps had never seen a drunken Naruto, react to his alcohol-enhanced come ons? For that matter, how would her very protective cousin react?

Her amused smirk turned into a sour frown at the thought of the Hyuuga and his recent, confusing behavior. She really couldn't tell if he was interested in her. Maybe he wasn't. Maybe it was a bizarre mind game. She wouldn't put it past him—he was probably getting some private kick out of messing with her mind. That jerk. Sakura smoothed her hands over her sleek black dress, and admired her reflection as she passed a shop window, but her frown only deepened as she saw a familiar brunette approaching.

"Sakura! Are you going to the party tonight?" Tenten, dressed in a simple red cheongsam, cut open in the back to reveal her beautiful shoulder, sauntered up alongside her. The weapons master was especially well dressed tonight—she'd even let her hair down to fall in heavy waves over her shoulders.

"Yeah, I think we're going to be a little early though." Sakura avoided making eye contact with her companion—everyone knew Tenten had been interested in Neji since they were genin, and somehow Sakura felt she'd be a little mad about the medic's recent 'dates' (if one could even call them that) with the Hyuuga prodigy. Sakura had no desire to be on her bad side.

Tenten, however, seemed unconcerned and linked her arm in Sakura's. "Oh, that's okay, we can use the time to catch up, and I'm sure Lee will be there early—you know how he is." She chuckled sweetly, and picked up the pace a little. Sakura, trapped, had to keep up, even though the strap on her shoe was slipping again. Damn Ino and her fashion advice!

"Lee tells me Hinata and Naruto have been seen with each other recently—but I'm sure you already knew that." Tenten had leaned in close, her voice joyful as if they spoke of a conspiracy. "I wonder how Lord Hyuuga will take his daughter hanging out with that prankster."

Sakura shrugged, and smiled wanly. "Not so badly, it seems. At least, Naruto hasn't said anything yet. I wonder if Lord Hyuuga even knows—it seems like he's probably too busy with other things to know what's going on with his daughters sometimes."

Tenten laughed pleasantly as they rounded the corner towards the bar. She really was such a kind girl; Sakura probably had no reason to be worried. "You're probably right—and after all, he has Neji to look after them."

Sakura smirked again, then grinned a little. "He does an excellent job of that—he's like an attack dog, about ready to bite Naruto's hand off just for looking at Hinata funny."

"So it is true."

Sakura felt a slow, icy chill creep along her spine.

"You have been the person he's been using as an excuse to escort them." Tenten's tone was matter-of-fact, but something had shifted in the way she held Sakura's arm, in the way she slammed the front door of the bar open, in the way she clenched her jaw. "Just don't expect, Haruno, that he's actually interested in you. That Hyuuga is a block of ice. He's interested in no one but himself, and there's no way you're going to be able to change that with your pretty, girly ways. Don't even try it."

Sakura tried to extract her arm from the weapon master's ever-tightening grip, to very little avail. Instead, Tenten pulled her around to look her right in the eyes. Sakura tried her best to look calm, but she knew her worry—her fear?—showed through her leaf-green eyes. Tenten cracked a small smirk.

"Pathetic," she muttered under her breath, releasing her grip on Sakura. The brunette stalked off toward a table where Lee was already downing—were those Shirley Temples? Yes, they probably were. Sakura quickly slinked towards the bar, hoping to escape unnoticed by the Beautiful Green Beast, but no such luck.

"Tenten! My beautiful Sakura! I can only hope you're doing well on this magnificent evening when we can all come together and celebrate the youthfulness of our comrades!" Lee had risen to scoop Tenten up around the waist in one arm, and was bearing down quickly to wrap the other around Sakura in an enormous bear hug. Sakura quickly plastered a terrified smile to her face and backed right up against the bar, leaving no room for his misguided show of affection. The daggers Tenten glared in her direction only encouraged her desire to escape. Thankfully it seemed the brunette wanted Lee to hug Sakura even less than Sakura did, and she artfully pulled on his ever-present vest, drawing him toward the dance floor.

"Lee, let Sakura get a drink…come dance with me instead," she whined poutily.

"Why Tenten, I didn't know you enjoyed dancing!" Lee's joy was almost uncontainable, and he swept the slightly shorter woman up in a hug. "I would be delighted to dance with you, my beloved teammate." Sakura may have imagined it, but there was something strange flickering in Lee's shining eyes as he turned toward her. "I will have to catch up with you after this song, my lovely flower, please, do not go anywhere."

She breathed a small sigh of relief as Tenten led Lee away, and leaned heavily on the bar behind her. "Bartender! A whisky sour, please," she sighed.

"A whisky sour? Forehead, you really don't know how to pick a drink." Ino sidled up along side Sakura, her fingers wrapped, commandingly, non-to-discreetly, around the wrist of her clearly reluctant boyfriend. "Bartender! Get her something girlier—a fuzzy navel! And one for me!"

Sakura sighed. "Ino, let me drink what I want. It's been a long few days."

"No way, Sakura, you're not playing sad sack on me tonight. Leave that to this lazy-ass." Ino leaned over to plant an affectionate kiss on Shikamaru's cheek, making the grumpy man's eyebrows furrow further. Ino leaned past him to scan the room, her bright eyes narrowing for a moment. "He's not here yet…"

Sakura cringed inwardly—she was terrified to see who Ino could, somewhere in the back of her crazy mind, set her up with. The woman had thought encouraging that Hyuuga was a good thing. Sakura was worried about what else she could come up with.

As Ino left to go scout for their friends, Shikamaru slumped down onto the barstool nearest Sakura, nodding sedately. "Stop worrying, it's only Kiba."

Sakura gave him a funny look. "What?"

"That she's trying to set you up with. Frankly I think it's a silly choice, but…" he shrugged, and then he looked at her with slightly concerned eyes. "Did you and Hyuuga fight?"

Sakura shook her head slightly. She was set up with Kiba. Okay. That would be weird. Wait. Did she fight with Neji?

"What kind of a question is that?"

Shikamaru didn't bother to reply, waiting.

"No, I didn't fight with him. He's just—well…he's confusing." Sakura felt an odd blush rising in her cheeks. "I can't tell what he wants from me. One moment, he seems genuinely interested in me, and then the very next he just shuts down."

Shikamaru rolled his eyes, muttering something, probably 'troublesome', under his breath. The bartender, not sure where Ino went, handed Sakura the fuzzy navel, and passed the whisky sour to Shikamaru. He smirked mildly, and switched the drinks back, but gave Sakura a hard look. "Didn't I tell you to be patient?"

"Why should I have to be patient, Shikamaru? He's a grown man. He should know how to approach a woman." Sakura pursed her lips irritably, took a slow sip of her drink. "Seriously, an ANBU captain and a genius, and he's as romantically capable as a post."

Shikamaru's eyes narrow, his smirk grew. "Ah, so you are romantically interested in him."

Sakura spluttered a little, coughing on her drink. "What? No!" Her blush was growing darker and Shikamaru's look grew more meaningful. "Well, I could be, if he was less of a dope, I suppose."

Shikamaru shrugged and turned to order a beer from the bar, and Sakura turned her attention to scanning the room for Kiba while slowly sipping at her drink. Huh. Well, he had potential, she supposed. He was good looking, in a rugged way, and surely he was a passionate person—he was practically an animal for all intents and purposes. There was a slight wildness about his eyes, a bit like a caged animal, anytime he had to come to the hospital, but he'd always been friendly to her.

There he was now, approaching nonchalantly as possible with an eager Ino dragging him along. He smiled wolfishly as they made eye contact and Sakura couldn't help but smile back.

"Sakura, meet your date for the evening, Kiba Inuzuka! Kiba, this is Sakura Ha--"

"We've already met, Ino...don't be so formal," Kiba laughed jovially, reaching over to steal the beer that had just arrived for Shikamaru. "Thanks, Nara," he continued, nodding with a wide smirk at the clearly irritated man. Shikamaru just rolled his eyes and ordered a second beer, but was prodded by Ino to open up the seat next to Sakura. He begrudgingly moved, and Kiba quickly took his place.

"So, pretty lady, come here often?" teased Kiba, his toothy smile radiant.

Sakura smirked back and rolled her eyes, taking another sip of her drink. Huh. Almost gone already. "Not often enough, Ino seems to think." Her tone was maybe a little bitter, because Kiba cocked his head to the side, concerned.

"You're not much of a partier, are you," he stated more than asked, ordering a second drink for her from the bar as she shook her head. He was contentious of her needs—Kiba was already racking up the points in his favor. "Well, that's okay. I'm gonna make sure you have a good time tonight."

His arm wrapped casually around her shoulder, and Sakura found she didn't particularly mind. In fact, she leaned into him a little as she finished off her drink, noting the smooth texture of his leather jacket, the deep, musky, warm scent radiating from him. He shifted to make her more comfortable—and was clearly not afraid of human touch. Point two in favor of Kiba.

"Do you want to dance?" The question surprised her as it formed on her lips. She couldn't recall the last time she'd asked a man to dance with her. Kiba only chuckled.

"Yeah, of course I do. Just be forewarned—I am killer on the dance floor."

"As in you slaughter your partner's toes, or you're really good?" Sakura smirked faintly at her mild joke, and caught Kiba's own smile. Apparently he had a sense of humor. Point three in his favor. Neji never would have taken such a flippant comment so well, that block of ice. Sakura was startled to find her thoughts drifting to the pale-eyed man—he wasn't even here and he was souring her evening! The nerve of him.

She took Kiba's rough hand in her own—a hard-working, physical man, by those hands, yet another point—and pulled him to the dance floor to distract her. There in the corner were Naruto and Hinata—when had they arrived? And to Sakura's left, in the middle of the floor, were Tenten and Lee. Wow! Look at Lee go! Tenten cast a curious eye in Sakura's direction, but it was far milder than the daggers she'd been glaring earlier as she was smiling warmly. Ino and Shikamaru shortly sidled up along side Sakura and Kiba, the blonde's arms holding the dark haired man a probably a little closer than was necessary. Shikamaru danced like a dead fish, sometimes.

"Having a good time yet, Forehead?"

"Maybe if you shut up and left me alone, pig." Sakura's slow, curved smile brought a playfully scandalized grin to Ino's face. And strangely enough, it was true, she really was having a good time. Kiba proved to be an amazing dancer, so much so that Sakura began to feel her head spin a little. She leaned closer to him, rested her hands on his broad, muscular chest, absently flicked away a dog hair. He smiled at her warmly—warmly! imagine that!—and rested his hands respectfully on her waist. Sakura was glad when the song changed to something slower and took the opportunity to sneak in closer, and rest her head on his chest. Her eyelids were feeling just a little heavy…

She jumped when his hands dropped a little lower down her backside than maybe was appropriate, but only smirked faintly, and leaned closer into his chest. Sakura opened one lazy eye to look at the crowd, caught up in the hypnotic sway of bodies and music and dark lights and a warm man who made his attraction to her quite evident. There was no mystery to Kiba, not as he drew her in closer to his strong form with his muscular arms and buried his nose in her hair. How very pleasant. Maybe she could kiss a man like this.

Yes, she probably could.

Sakura lifted her face to look him in the eyes, smiled softly, her lips parted to show her delicate white teeth. He met her gaze steadily, his eyes slightly darkened by alcohol or the closeness of their bodies or something else she didn't know. She leaned up closer to him, he was awfully tall. A little too tall. He'd better hurry up and lean down here before she thought better of this.

A pale, long-fingered hand tapped on Kiba's shoulder; Sakura saw it out of the corner of her eye. Kiba jumped slightly, breaking with her gaze, and Sakura followed his line of sight. She groaned unhappily, quite audibly. She didn't care if he heard her. How dare he interrupt!

"Inuzuka, do you mind if I have this dance?"

* * *

Hi! Sorry this took so long—I've been working on my senior thesis, which has taken up a lot of my free time, and my thinking capacity. However, I have only a few weeks of school left before I am most unfortunately a full-fledged adult with a proper BA! After that point, I should be able to update much more regularly, until September when I am moving to France, where I am not so sure about what kind of internet connection I will be able to have. Well! And yes, everyone gets a cookie…look at all these people who guessed right! Thanks again for your patience and your encouragement.

PS—this is my first semi-romantic scene ever! And forgive Sakura for being a little out of character—she is drunk, after all.


	7. Chapter 7

"Hyuuga!" Sakura snapped irritably, "What the hell's your problem?!" She whirled towards the tall, pale man, glaring directly into his narrowed, pale eyes. "Can't you seem I'm trying to enjoy myself?" She turned back towards Kiba, ready to continue where they left off, but noticed Kiba's look of sheer terror. His hands had dropped from her body and he was backing away slightly, staring fixedly at Neji, stammering unintelligible syllables.

Sakura rolled her eyes, her hands on her hips, as she turned to face her antagonist—why couldn't he just leave her in peace?

She blinked slightly. Her eyes must be a little bleary from the drink, because Neji wasn't wearing his forehead protector—she'd so rarely seen him without it—and she couldn't see the curse mark she knew was there. She blinked again, and leaned in closer, noting the deep, faintly tired lines around his narrowed eyes and grim mouth, the extremely stern air of authority in his bearing reaching levels she'd never seen him reach before, the very definitely missing curse mark—

Sakura nearly fainted.

"Lord Hyuuga! Oh! Oh! I'm so sorry!" Sakura bowed very deeply—she really just wanted to melt into a puddle on the floor—and tried to hide the tears of terror that were spontaneously forming in her eyes. Had she just sworn at the head of the Hyuuga clan? What was the punishment for that? Maybe he was going to cut out her tongue. Oh no, oh no, oh no.

Hiashi Hyuuga said nothing as she remained bowed to him on the dance floor. She saw his arms rise up to cross disapprovingly across his chest, somehow heard his irritated exhaling—too subtle to be a real sigh—above the noise of the crowd and music. Perhaps the whole venue had shut down at her act of sheer idiocy—no, someone was jostling into her backside, the world had not stopped turning.

"If you'll please excuse us, Kiba, Miss Haruno and I have some important matters to discuss, and now seems the perfect time." His voice held that same annoying, calm, commanding tone that so irritated her when it came from Neji, that tone of almost bored superiority.

"Oh, of course, Lord Hyuuga—I, I, I—um, yeah." Kiba's voice cracked as he spoke. How could he be so afraid of this man? Of course, Sakura was terrified, but he was a man! He wasn't supposed to be afraid. "I was just gonna go check up on Akamaru—outside—over there." He pointed towards the exit as he beat his hasty retreat. Then again, perhaps he was acting very wisely. Who knew how volatile the Hyuuga clan leader could be when sworn at and insulted?

Sakura dared to peek up at the stern face of this patriarch, her stomach churning as they made eye contact. "I'm really sorry," she said in a tiny voice. "I thought it was your nephew."

He cocked an eyebrow at her. "I didn't know my nephew had made such a negative impression on you." He offered her his hand—so like Neji's, in its long-fingered paleness—and helped her rise.

"Well…well…" Sakura wasn't sure what to say to the imposing older man as he escorted her to the bar's private back room. She'd never been in there before; it was reserved for the elite among the elite of Kohona society, the old clan leaders and their guests. A waitress respectfully bowed and opened the door to the room artfully.

The room itself was empty presently, and was outfitted like a classical tearoom, with tatami mats on the floor and a small tea service to one side. Sakura courteously removed her shoes before entering after the Hyuuga lord, and settled herself primly on the floor near him. She kept her eyes on the mats, studying the reeds woven together there, considered who might have made them, anything to avoid looking at the imposing figure beside her. All the alcohol had surely been cleansed from her system by the mix of terror and adrenaline.

The Hyuuga lord waited patiently for a minute, silent, and then he cleared his throat once. Sakura jumped. Oh no, oh no! The tea! She was supposed to serve it! How could she serve it with her hands, her whole body, shaking like this?

Somehow she managed to do it without spilling a drop, though she had clattered the pot a little more than was polite. She waited for him to take a sip of tea before following suit.

They passed another few moments in silence.

"So, do you often frequent this establishment?" His tone was steady and even, he didn't seem angry at all.

"Oh, no, sir. It—it's a special occasion." Sakura winced. Her voice sounded so childish and bubbly compared to his—excitable, even.

"Ah, tomorrow's rendezvous with the Kazekage." Lord Hyuuga took another slow sip from his teacup. He was a very graceful man, despite his age. Sakura couldn't help but watch his actions.

"With—the Kazekage?" Wait a moment: weren't ANBU missions supposed to be top secret? Why was he telling her this?

"Yes, of course. We contracted them jointly, the Kazekage and I. It's somewhat of a state matter."

"Oh." She was unsure of what else to say. Was she supposed to say anything?

"My nephew wishes to extend his deepest apologies to you tonight, Miss Haruno, he got caught up in business and was unable to make it tonight, though he did dearly wish to say goodbye to you. Since I was here to observe my daughter's interactions with…" Here, even the clan lord had to clear his throat as if in disbelief. "With one Naruto Uzumaki, I told him I would convey his sentiments to you."

Sakura felt her eyes widen and a blush creep up her cheeks as she stared at the delicate plum blossoms embossed on her teacup.

"He feared you would be unhappy that he didn't show up, but apparently you would have been more upset had he." There was no emotion in his voice and it only compounded her agonized embarrassment. Neji was surely going to hate her now. She'd better change the subject.

"If you don't mind my asking, Lord Hyuuga, sir, how do you find Naruto's interactions with Hina—with Lady Hinata?"

He set down his teacup to reflect before answering. Sakura recognized that introspective look from his nephew. Sakura wondered how many other characteristics the stoic men shared.

"He seems to me to be—" a small pause, "—a very respectful man. Perhaps his outgoing, persuasive nature will rub off on my daughter. Which reminds me, Miss Haruno, once my nephew returns from this mission, I would like you to continue to chaperone them with him. He seems to trust your judgment…" his voice trailed off ominously for just a moment—"and, lacking another age appropriate female chaperone, I find I must trust you as well."

Sakura coughed on her tea with surprise, pressed her hand to her throat, tried to regain her decorum. Was he instructing her to continue to double date Neji?

"Sir?

He only gave her an imperceptibly subtle look in reply, waiting for her full question. She lowered her eyes and bit her tongue to avoid muttering.

"Miss Haruno, please remember, as a chaperone for the heiress to the Hyuuga clan, you must also maintain a certain level of politesse. It really wouldn't do for people to see you drunk and kissing that Inuzuka in the middle of a crowded bar."

Sakura instantly flushed bright red and looked as far away from him as possible. How dare he tell her what to do! Her eye twitched. Probably, he had the right, somewhere in some ancient law scroll. Dammit.

"You're excused now, Miss Haruno."

"Yes, sir. Thank you sir." Sakura bowed deeply to the floor as she turned to leave.

"Oh, and Miss Haruno, one last thing." She paused, but did not meet his gaze. "I'll expect you at dinner on the evening of my nephew's return. That will be my daughter's next date with Uzumaki."

Sakura swallowed hard, bowing deeply again as the waitress slid the door shut behind her.

------------

"My youthful blossom! Please wait!" Sakura cringed as she heard delighted bounding footsteps rapidly approaching her from behind.

"Hello, Lee," she sighed. No escaping at this point.

"I did not see you after I was done dancing with a most youthful Tenten yesterday evening, even though I felt I greatly needed to speak with you." Lee fell into pace with Sakura as he caught up with her, his beaming face shielding her eyes from the sun.

"Oh, I'm sorry. I left early, I was feeling kinda sick."

"How truly unfortunate, Sakura! Are you feeling better today?" His round eyes welled up with worry and Sakura couldn't help but smile.

"Yes, yes I am. A certain pain I've been feeling for the past few weeks just disappeared. This morning in fact."

"Oh, that is wonderful news! I am sure my eternal rival will be glad to hear of it on his return." Ah, Lee. So kind and yet so lacking in subtlety.

Sakura smiled faintly to herself before Lee's words sank in. "Why would your eternal rival be glad to hear about it?"

"Well, Sakura, isn't it clear? The seed of affection has finally germinated in his stony heart and is growing into a passionate flower of love and adoration."

Sakura did a double take. Somehow, Lee's eyes had grown three times larger and he clasped his bandaged hands to his chest in a moment of reverence.

"Not, of course, that I am pleased that this blossom has bloomed in favor of you, my beautiful Sakura, but love is youthfully unpredictable like this sometimes." Lee turned to her with a kind, bright smile, his dark eyes radiating genuine happiness, but then he became more serious. "Sakura, I must know—are you fond of my youthful rival?"

Sakura felt her mouth go dry, and she swallowed quickly to try and cover it up. "He's very—dependable, Lee."

"Ah, he is very dependable! How perceptive of you to hit on one of his most genuine traits as the root of your own affection!" He turned to her swiftly, his large hands resting on her shoulders. "I suppose I shall have to work on my dependability then, so that I may not lose to Neji Hyuuga!"

Sakura laughed pleasantly and shook her head. "Lee, I don't know if I'm fond of Hyuu—of Neji." Perhaps she could call him by his first name now. They were soon to be joined at the hip, if Naruto and Hinata had anything to say about it.

Lee gasped in surprise. "Sakura, please do not tell me you are only playing with his heart! My rival's heart is a very tender, fragile thing! It has lacked nourishment and sunlight in its development! Surely such a cruel act on your part would crush it."

Sakura blushed faintly and cast her eyes to the storefront they happened to be standing by. A little old man was reading a paper on the sidewalk next to them, to which his eyes quickly darted whenever she caught him looking. She wondered if he was staring at Lee or at her.

"Lee, please don't worry," she sighed, "it's not my intention to hurt him. I just am not sure what to expect out of him. He seems sort of—well, frankly he keeps giving me mixed signals and it's a bit irritating."

Lee jumped a little as if startled at her admission, and then smiled widely. "Well then, Sakura, you must guide him in the way of showing very direct signals, and I too vow to aid him in this endeavor! Only I must not aid him too well, or I will surely lose my chance at a date with my beloved cherry blossom." Lee's tone had grown melodramatically solemn with his proclamations and he raised his fist to the sky as though making a vow. Sakura giggled and tucked a lock of her hair behind her ear. A thought struck her.

"Hey, Lee…have you ever thought of pursuing Tenten?"

Lee met her gaze very curiously, a faint blush creeping up from the collar of his jumpsuit. "What was that, Sakura?"

"Well, she's a nice girl and all, and she is very passionate about her art." Sakura shrugged very matter-of-factly.

"Tenten, Sakura?" His blush continued to creep. She must have struck a nerve.

"Yes, Tenten. We had a nice chat on the way to the bar the other day, and she is an excellent dancer. Not as good as you, of course, but I know you know how good she is."

"Ah, yes. She is excellent on her feet, isn't she."

Sakura let the silence settle around them for a second, looking as innocently as possible into Lee's bright eyes. Finally, suddenly, he whirled away from her, his hand to his forehead like an actor in a bad soap opera.

"Sakura, my darling! How perceptive you are! I am sorry if my pursuit of you has been lacking of late, but I cannot stop my thoughts to most traitorously traveling to my beautiful and youthful teammate Tenten! I have let you down! I will run five hundred laps around Kohona for my betrayal!" He looked about ready to set off when Sakura caught him by the wrist, laughing delightedly.

"You goose, I'm happy you're interested in Tenten! I think you two would be very good together." She smiled at him widely, hoping to soothe his misery. It seemed to work, because his eyes, moments ago brimming with tears, began to shine with hope.

"Do you really think so, Sakura?"

She nodded warmly, smoothing a lock of his hair that somehow had become disarrayed in his passionate arm waving. "I do, Lee. Now," she shoved him playfully in the vague direction of the training grounds and laughed again—"go find your weapons master and show her how you feel!"

"Thank you, Sakura! Thank you! I surely will!" He beamed like a lighthouse. It was amazing, really. "And you must also promise me to show my eternal rival how you feel about him, so he can know how to be more direct in approaching you. I would ask Ino for advice about how to do that, she is very wise in the ways of directing men to do what she wants."

Sakura rolled her eyes, hiding a smile, as Lee bounded away from her, and jumped slightly as she felt something press against the back of her knee. Something cool and damp.

"Akamaru?"

The big dog was staring at her meaningfully, and wuffed once as she reached over to scratch his head.

"What do you want? Where's Kiba, huh?" She scratched behind his ears and smiled as he nudged her knee again. She noticed a small note stuck carefully into the fur on his shoulder and pulled it off, looking around curiously.

"Sakura—Meet you at eleven outside the hospital tomorrow night. Ino said that's when you get off your shift. Look forward to seeing you–K."

Something defiant clenched deep within Sakura's gut. She was looking forward to tomorrow night, for certain

* * *

Surprise! It wasn't Neji! Did I surprise you? Well, haha, Neji was taking care of some important business that you will find out about soon. Okay, writing Lee is extremely difficult, it was exhausting doing it. But I really am fond of him, he's so unreservedly genuine! Still, I don't know how someone could make him the main character of a story, they must have so much more energy than I do!

In other news, I am considering beginning a Shikamaru x Sakura story sometime in the near future. Yes, I guess I like interesting pairings. Would anyone be interested in reading that? Let me know what you think! Again, thank you to all my wonderful reviewers, I do my best not to disappoint you! (Sorry about the so soon update, I was not sure when I would have enough free time to update this again, so I thought I should just do it now.)

And, as per request, there is cocoa to go with your cookies now.


	8. Chapter 8

_Chapter Eight_

Sakura giggled against his shoulder, trying her best to remain silent as they crept closer to their prey. His wide, bright eyes looked smilingly back at her, hushing her for just a moment longer—

"Akamaru, you know I can smell you guys from over here."

"Phooey!" Sakura flounced pleasantly towards the large man stretched out, presumably napping on the grass. "I wanted to surprise you!"

Kiba smiled up at her, one hand blocking the sun from his eyes and the other snaking up to catch her wrist and pull her down beside him. "Haven't you ever heard the maxim 'let sleeping dogs lie'?" He nuzzled his nose against her palm, kissing it roughly and nipping playfully at her wrist before letting her go. Sakura couldn't help but blush at his forward actions—even in private, she found him sometimes a bit shocking.

She gathered his head into her lap, his coarse hairs prickling against her bare legs, and beamed down at him. He shifted slightly to be more comfortable, he pressed his cheek against her shin and grumbled low in his chest. Akamaru settled down a few yards away, quite content to enjoy the sunshine.

"Maybe I'll take a nap now, so much more comfy." A small wolfish smile played across his lips—lips Sakura had become quite well acquainted with in the past few days. She laughed and massaged his ear gently with her fingertips, threatening to lull him to sleep—she watched with amusement as his eyelids grew heavier and heavier. Her eyelids began to flutter closed as well, she was content.

Suddenly, Kiba shook himself from head to toe, arousing Sakura from her short reverie. He turned a dark, somewhat accusing eye toward her. Her heart fluttered—she knew that look. He was on all fours, and was slowly backing her down onto the grass, his hand was resting on her side, on her hip, on her thigh, as he settled her smoothly onto the ground. The blades of grass pressing into the backs of her legs and her neck were as coarse and prickly as his hair, and her hair was standing on end as she watched him, waiting as patiently as she could muster.

Thankfully, Sakura had learned in her five short days of bliss with Kiba that he also was not a patient person—she never had to wait long before that dark, slightly distant look in his eyes would bring his soft lips crashing down to her own. Something in the pit of her stomach would always twist, a pleasurable pain, like how he was now pulling with those sharp canines on her lower lip, how his fingers dug deeply into her thigh, trying to maintain some sense of decency as they were, after all, still out in the open.

She giggled and pushed him away, turning her head to one side, enjoying his frustrated growl, enjoying more the way his teeth sank into her collarbone and the way he sucked a small bruise onto the exposed skin. Her eyes fluttered closed and her breath was a little rapid as she pulled him closer, her fingers making clawing into his back. Damn jacket! Damn jacket always getting in her way! Sakura snaked her hands up to tug his jacket off, and it was her turn to growl in frustration. Damn snaps and buckles on damn jacket! Kiba laughed softly into her hair—his laugh was always something like a small bark even when it was so gentle, and he sat up shortly, straddling her tummy, to help her take it off. She continued to pull ineffectively at the buckles when he suddenly stiffened, his nose to the wind. Akamaru likewise was sniffing at the wind, and barked once towards an entrance to the clearing.

A lazy dark haired man loped easily towards them across the field, pausing only to ruffle Akamaru's ears as the big dog came to greet him. "Hey, Kiba. Hey, Sakura." He looked away from the compromising position of the pair on the grass—Sakura felt the heat bloom in her cheeks and she found she couldn't look at him either. Shikamaru had clearly just returned from their mission—his clothes were a little dirty and he was glistening with a mixture of grime and sweat. There was a twig sticking lazily out of his ponytail.

"You need something, Shikamaru?" Kiba asked nonchalantly, continuing to slip off his jacket as if to underscore that he was interrupting them.

"Uhm…yeah. Sakura has an appointment tonight at the Hyuuga main house for dinner. Invitation from Lord Hyuuga himself. He'd be really disappointed in her if she didn't show. And in me if I didn't bring her." Shikamaru cleared his throat, she could hear his irritation in just that cough. Sakura rolled away from under Kiba, who snorted crossly. His heavy hand fell upon her back and it was clear he didn't intend to let her go.

Sakura sighed and turned her green eyes pleadingly to Kiba, pursing her lips together in a hopefully fetching manner. Unfortunately it was too fetching because he leaned in again to kiss her. She put her fingers to his mouth to stop him, but he only nipped at their tips.

"Lord Hyuuga invited her himself." Shikamaru's impatience was clearly growing, but Kiba staunchly ignored him. Sakura found her attention drifting away from the shadow user to the mesmerizing, feral eyes in front of her.

Shikamaru sighed deeply. "Hinata is going to be a nervous wreck if you don't come. You know Naruto is formally meeting Lord Hyuuga for the first time, and if you aren't there…" He shrugged. "Not like they're my problem. I didn't set them up. I kinda wish I could go just to watch Naruto make a fool of himself."

Sakura turned a glowering eye to him, some of her rationality returning as she simmered. How dare he bring reason into this! How dare he try and make her feel guilty…and how dare she let it work.

With a deep sigh, she got up off the ground. "I'll see you soon, Kiba." When he looked away, sullen, she roughed up his hair and kissed the top of his head. "I—I feel obligated."

"Yeah, I know," came his low, growling reply that made the knot in her stomach tighten more. He swatted her butt playfully as she turned to leave. "I'll be waiting for you."

Sakura was sure Shikamaru would have some harsh words for her as they made their way back to town, but he didn't seem very talkative. Once or twice, she did feel like she was on the receiving end of a dirty look, but she dismissed it as Shikamaru's perpetual scowl.

When the silence became too much, she had to ask, "Who told you where to find me?"

"Ino," he sighed irritably. "She was getting impatient to doll you up to impress the Hyuugas tonight. Frankly, I was more afraid of what she would do to me if I didn't bring you back than what Lord Hyuuga would."

-------

Sakura was truly beginning to believe that Ino mainly set her up with people as an excuse to make her over. Was her every day outfit really that boring, that her best friend would try and dress her whenever she got the chance? Today, in respect for the Hyuuga clan's deep-seated tradition, she was wearing a simple but beautiful yukata in a deep cherry red, with a scattered design of stylized cranes and flowers. Cherry blossoms. Of course. But it was very pretty, and she found herself wishing for more occasions to wear such an outfit. Her work really kept her from having the time to really dress up—and even on the rare occasions she could, she always felt the need to keep a few kunai on hand, just in case. But today Ino had insisted it would be rude to her hosts to arm herself, and had taken all her usual armaments away, replacing them with some of Sakura's grandmother's jewelry—a pair of pink pearl earrings, a ring, a beaded bracelet. She tugged at the beads on her wrist, the smooth feel of glass under her fingers relaxing as she made her way to the gate of the Hyuuga complex.

"Sakura!" Naruto was there already, waiting rather patiently. Someone had been smart enough to find him a traditional-looking outfit, all in navy and white. He even carried a bouquet of spring lilies in his hand, bright fuchsia. He strutted over to see her proudly, trying his best to look serious, but she could see the delight in his eyes. "I was worried you wouldn't make it." He engulfed her in a bear hug, careful not to crush the flowers; she could tell he was a little tired because it was less enthusiastic than usual. Or maybe it was nerves. She knew she was nervous—he had twice as much right to be.

"So the mission was okay?"

"Yeah, it went really well. Just wait until you see who we brought here! You're gonna be so surprised!" He bounced around like an excited puppy, and then remembering where he was, smoothed out his robes and stood ramrod straight. Sakura giggled. He looked a little ridiculous, that serious scowl plastered to his face. He looked familiar.

"Aw! Quit giggling, Sakura! I practiced this a lot during the mission!" Naruto's serious scowl disintegrated into a pout. "Neji gave me lessons and everything!"

Sakura blinked—no wonder he looked so comical. That had been a slightly exaggerated imitation of Neji's usual look—irritated, faintly holier-than-thou, bored. Sakura giggled again, pressing her hands to her mouth to contain a true laugh. Naruto only pouted more.

"Ahem."

Both Sakura and Naruto snapped to attention, their eyes leveling on Neji's irritated, bored visage. He looked a little more irritated than bored this time. He was dressed in his usual garb, forehead protector in place. He had a scratch on his cheek, probably from the mission. It looked like a branch had hit him in the face. How ridiculous, the Hyuuga prodigy, untouchable by human hands, his perfect face marred by a branch. Sakura smiled widely at him, she felt so silly, she couldn't help it. Her hand covered her mouth to stifle another giggle. Neji arched one eyebrow at her, slowly.

"I fail to see what's so amusing, Haruno."

Sakura's smile only bloomed wider. She coughed to hide her giggles. Naruto elbowed her in the side.

"Sorry, Hyuu—Neji."

"Hn. This way." Was it her imagination or did his jaw clench slightly, did he swallow faintly, when she said his name? It was probably just her imagination.

Naruto gallantly took Sakura's arm as Neji led them toward the main Hyuuga compound. She noticed, after a moment, that the sniffing noise she was hearing was coming from Naruto—he was sniffing at her, a perplexed look on his face.

"Sakura," he whispered seriously, "You smell like dog."

"WHAT!!"

At her shout, Neji turned to give the pair trailing behind him a funny look. Sakura lowered her voice.

"What do you mean I smell like dog? I just took a shower, idiot," she hissed at him, blushing.

"Well, not a lot like dog…just like you've been spending a lot of time with dogs…have you been hanging out with Akamaru?"

Sakura's blush grew more furious. "No, why would I do that?"

Naruto looked a bit serious. "So you've been hanging out with Kiba?"

Sakura didn't meet his eyes and said nothing. Neji was falling back into step with them and somehow, the knot in her stomach twisted in a way that was definitely not pleasant. Sakura found she couldn't meet his eyes either.

She felt someone's fingertips flutter over her shoulder as they approached the main door—Neji held something white between his fingertips. Mortified, Sakura felt the color all drain from her face.

"Just a dog hair, Haru—Sakura." He swallowed again, his eyes also downcast. Sakura suddenly felt the barely repressible urge to run.

Once in the house, servants—all of them branch members like Neji, she surmised from the marks on their foreheads—escorted them to the main dining hall. Hinata and Hanabi, both dressed in traditional elegance, were waiting very patiently, their eyes cast away from each other. As soon as her eyes lit upon Naruro, however, Hinata's whole face flushed a delicate shade of pink.

"Naruto," she barely whispered, a smile gracing her features.

"Hinata, I've missed you," he whispered back, kneeling beside her. He took her hand into his, and gently pressed a small soft kiss to it. Sakura was impressed that he didn't maul her with a bear hug or even tackle her to the ground. He did push a lock of hair behind her ear and presented her with his bouquet—her pale eyes lit up and her demure blush deepened. A servant rushed to get a vase for the flowers.

Sakura found she didn't want to take her eyes off the gentle exchange between the couple, but a sharp, harsh laugh from Hanabi shattered the peace surrounding them. All eyes turned to the youngest Hyuuga, but it seemed that was to be her only outburst. She turned away, her pale eyes darkened, and said nothing. The room was silent.

Neji coughed slightly, his eyes still not meeting Sakura's, though she turned to look at him. Instead, he offered her his hand, to help her be seated. Curious, she took it. In just a week, she'd forgotten how polite he really was. Really well bred. His fingers closed just a little around hers as he escorted her to her place at the table, beside his own, across from Hinata and Hanabi and presumably Naruto. Though that would place Naruto at Hanabi's side. How peculiar.

"So…Naruto tells me your mission was successful." Sakura sucked slightly at her lower lip. Why was her voice quavering?

"Mm. Yes. In a certain sense." Neji's eyes were on his plate. His fingers, hovering over the silverware, twitched almost restlessly.

"That's good. Did something hit you in the face?"

He seemed startled by the question and his fingers rose to his cheek. "Oh, yes. A branch."

Sakura couldn't help but grin. "I guessed as much. Want me to look at it?"

"It's nothing serious, Ha—Sakura," he grunted—well, everything except her name. Here his voice drawled, as if testing it out, seeing if it fit.

"Still, Neji, I'm sure you'd like to have your face back to its usual perfect condition," she teased, her grin growing faintly malicious. He scowled, his white eyes finally meeting hers. She found herself swallowing, her throat suddenly dry.

"If you prefer it that way, please fix it." His voice was very low, a faint rumble in it, and she felt like she'd swallowed a desert. Her hand reached up, chakra glowing in her fingertips, and she softly traced the red mark on his cheek. She noticed Neji's eyelids lower, his gaze falling to just below her eyes, a blush on his cheeks. Sakura leaned a bit closer, wanting to be sure there wouldn't be the faintest line left on the porcelain skin of his face, but Neji straightened up, back, away from her, as if he'd been shocked.

Naruto, who'd for some reason taken the seat on the other side of Sakura, was kind enough to elaborate on the source of Neji's surprise.

"Hey, Sakura, what's that on your neck there?"

Sakura blushed furiously. Apparently, Ino hadn't noticed the bruise slowly forming on her neck while making her up. There was the glaring evidence of her time well spent with Kiba Inuzuka.

* * *

Oh man, how will Sakura get out of this one? Bwa ha ha!

Thank you again for all your reviews! They are really so encouraging.


	9. Chapter 9

_Chapter Nine_

Sakura felt like she was going to melt into a little puddle. When was Lord Hyuuga arriving? Who were all these other chairs for? Would someone please rescue her from her mortification?

"Looks like a bruise." Naruto interjected helpfully.

Sakura felt the fiery glare of Neji Hyuuga upon her. His hands, white-knuckled, clenched around a knife. Was he planning to stab her? Probably not. But maybe. He was glaring fixedly at the wall when she tried to meet his gaze.

"It's probably just a curling iron burn, from getting all that dumb hair done up like that. Idiotic." Hanabi, her arms folded across her chest, stared grimly back across the table, right at Sakura.

"Ha-Hanabi, that's not very p-p-polite," Hinata whispered softly, her eyes in her lap.

"A curling iron burn? Did you let Ino do your hair again? Dammit, Sakura, you know she's gonna fry it all gross like hers one of these days! She probably wants to turn you blonde!"

Sakura sunk into her chair. "Her hair is not fried, Naruto, it's nicer than mine. And she can actually do stuff with it." Sakura returned Hanabi's stare, wondering if this was her usual demeanor. Sakura was not particularly familiar with the younger Hyuuga. She was five years younger than them, right? Fifteen, sixteen? That would surely explain her rancor—Sakura remembered how surly she could be at that age. She smiled at her warmly, but Hanabi only scowled more and looked away.

"Wou-would you like s-s-some ointment for it, Sakura?" Hinata's eyes fluttered between her cousin and Sakura—had someone told Hinata what she'd been doing the past few days? Why did that seem so upsetting to her? What would Hinata care?

"She's perfectly capable of healing it herself, if she wants no one to see it," Neji cut her off. Hinata's eyes fell back into her lap, and Naruto growled defensively.

"Don't take that tone with my girlfriend," he rumbled, about to rise from the table.

Neji said nothing. Eyebrows knitted together dangerously, he merely looked away from the rest of the company. Sakura pressed her fingers to the mark on her neck, but with the damage done, she wasn't sure she should remove it.

A servant quietly slid open the main door to the dining room at that very moment, and the company all stood and bowed respectfully as Lord Hyuuga entered. Just steps behind him, Sakura was startled to see another familiar face—

The Kazekage himself followed closely behind, guarded on either side by his siblings. Lord Hyuuga bowed shortly as servants escorted the Kazekage to Hanabi's side, his siblings to their respective places at the table.

"May I please introduce the Kazekage and his siblings, Temari and Kankuro," announced a servant, bowing to indicate it was time to sit. Sakura, her fingers still pressed to her neck, quickly erased her bruise and nodded pleasantly as the food was served. Eating. Here was something she could do without embarrassing herself.

The first course was served in silence. Sakura noticed how Hanabi glowered constantly at the redheaded man at her side, and how Hinata looked exceedingly embarrassed about something. For his part, the Kazekage seemed as distant as usual, and his siblings as guarded as usual. Naruto was struggling to eat politely—apparently, Neji had given him lessons on formal dining manners—but occasionally he looked just seconds from devouring his plate. Neji would occasionally cough when Naruto picked up the wrong utensil to attack the next course.

Sakura absently noticed the shrimp in the salad. She wondered if that had been Neji's idea. They were delicious—no wonder he had such a sensitive palate if he was used to eating such food from heaven. Sakura smiled faintly, worried. The knot in her stomach twisted tighter. She felt Neji's eyes upon her, but when she turned to look at him, he was looking grimly away. The muscles in his jaw line were tense, and not just from chewing. He seemed unhappy. Sakura found herself looking to anyone else at the table.

Lord Hyuuga's eyes were watching, with a catlike intensity, the exchange between his daughter Hinata and her suitor. Naruto would occasionally look across the table to her, a small, playful grin on his face, and Hinata would blush warmly, would smile softly, would hide her face behind one tiny, delicate hand.

Hanabi, beside her, only pushed her food around on her plate. The Kazekage also seemed uncomfortable, despite his blank façade. Sakura wasn't sure if he usually ate much—but at this rate no morsel of food would pass over his lips tonight.

"I was expecting the Hokage tonight, as well, Lord Kazekage," Lord Hyuuga interjected during a moment of very dreary silence, "but I was just recently informed that she became otherwise engaged last minute. I hope this won't offend you."

The Kazekage shook his head, clearing his throat slightly after taking a sip of his tea. "No, Hiashi, no. This is, after all, more of a private matter than an affair of the state in any case."

Kankuro and Temari exchanged glances that were hard not to notice—a look of strong concern for their brother. Sakura wondered what sort of private matter the Kazekage would have with the head of the Hyuuga clan. She also wondered at his ease at calling Lord Hyuuga by his given name. It was strange how much he had changed since that fateful episode in Suna all those years ago when they'd revived him after the extraction of that demon. Sakura thought back even further to the first time she met him and shivers ran down her spine. She looked away from his cold face, and was greeted by one she so seldom expected to be warm, much less concerned for her.

Neji's pale eyes were searching her face—almost studying it, if she had to really classify that look—and his eyebrows were knitted together just slightly, just enough to make a small crease between them. Without thinking, she flashed him a reassuring smile and reached her hand over to softly squeeze his fingertips as if to say 'I'm okay'. Something about her gesture brought the faintest hint of a true smile to his lips—Sakura's stomach instantly dropped three delicious inches—and he squeezed back so delicately, then nodded in the Kazekage's direction as if indicating she should be listening.

"—which is why I was so pleased to hear of your search, Lord Kazekage." Lord Hyuuga's tone was very serious, decorous, vaguely pleasant. "I'm sure you can see the benefits of my proposition."

Wait a moment, what had she missed in that—that moment? How could she have missed this? What was going on?

Sakura cast a quick glance around the table, looking for cues as to what was going on. The Kazekage was looking increasingly uncomfortable—frankly, she thought he looked a little constipated or something—while his siblings faces registered a mixture of amusement and concern. Naruto was no help, clearly paying no attention to anything but his food and the beautiful woman across the table from him. Neji looked on with serious attention, his features once again solemn. Only Hanabi seemed to be showing any depth of emotion—her eye was twitching a mile a minute and the enamel of her plate was suffering under increasingly violent attacks from her knife. Sakura was exaggerating in this examination—but for a Hyuuga, the teenager was showing far too much emotion.

"Of course, Hanabi is rather young, but a longer engagement would give you some time to get to know each other, as is fitt—Hanabi, you don't have permission to leave the table." Any taste of pleasantness drained from Lord Hyuuga's voice as his youngest daughter shot up from the table, her eyes glistening faintly.

"May I please be excused, Father?" Her voice betrayed no emotion, as was fitting for a Hyuuga, but her faintly shaking form spoke in volumes.

"No. Take your seat." Sakura shivered as well at his icy tone, but it only seemed to steel Hanabi's resolve. Ignoring her father's command, blew past him, out the door and toward—well, Sakura wasn't particularly sure where she was headed. Lord Hyuuga seemed mildly shocked by this, but his brows soon knitted together in a familiar look of irritation.

"Neji—" he began, but Neji was already headed to the door. His pale eyes locked on Sakura's with such a look of concern that she found herself bowing quickly as she went to follow him in aiding his cousin.

"Was your uncle proposing an engagement between—between…" she found herself asking as they tracked Hanabi through the complex. That girl sure could move. Neji's byakugan was activated, and Sakura found herself fascinated with the veins suddenly so prominent around his eyes. They made their way along maze-like corridors and she was glad to have him at her side—she knew she would be lost in moments otherwise.

"Between Hanabi and the Kazekage, yes. He seems to think it would be very beneficial for our clan to have daughters married to not one but two Kages." Sakura watched his jaw clench tighter as he continued to track his cousin. "My uncle does sometimes lack in—well, in romantic ideals, I suppose." Sakura couldn't tell in the dim light of this corridor, but Neji seemed to blush at his last statement. His jaw line certainly got tighter. Something about that made Sakura smile faintly, so much so that she almost collided into an old woman who seemed to appear out of nowhere. Neji luckily caught her by the wrist, and the woman pointed out to them the direction in which Hanabi had fled.

The feeling of his warm fingers on her wrist—he didn't let go even when Sakura was no longer in danger of bowling over grandmothers—brought Sakura back to reality. "Wait, two Kages?"

Neji lowered his focused eyes for a split second, a wry grin spreading across his face. "I had to convince my uncle to at least consider Naruto, for my beloved cousin's sake, somehow."

Sakura's eyes grew wide and delighted at the thought—she could just imagine the solemn debate between the two stoic men.

"When my cousin's affections for the future Hokage didn't appeal to him, I of course switched to a social and economic tactic, which brought him quickly to my side." Neji sighed here in disappointment. "Unfortunately, he had already been entertaining the thought of forming an alliance between our clan and that of the Kazekage, and with Hinata now attached elsewhere, that fate fell to Hanabi."

Sakura's eyes darkened thoughtfully. "She's far too young for something like this."

Neji nodded, slowing their pace. His hand finally dropped from Sakura's wrist so he could raise a finger to his lips, demanding her silence. He reached out a pale hand to knock on a heavy wooden door.

"Go away, you traitor!"

"Hanabi, it's me," he said, with a gentleness that surprised Sakura less than it would have a few weeks ago.

"I know who you are, bastard! Leave me alone! This is all your fault!" There was the sound of something slamming against the door—it sounded like shoes, or maybe a wooden bowl. Whatever it was clattered to the floor noisily, but failed to cover Hanabi's growing sobs.

Neji sighed softly, and smoothly slid the door open. Hanabi shrieked angrily at him, and he didn't bother to block the second shoe that flew in his direction. "I deserved that, Hanabi. I know. I'm sorry." His voice was low and soothing, and Sakura found herself, despite the highly inappropriate circumstances, imagining him using that voice on her. Oh, goodness, her knees would just melt. Her knees were melting. This was not good—he wasn't her feral, ravenous creature. He didn't set her heart to fluttering with passion. He—he was holding his sobbing cousin to his chest, rocking her soothingly, stroking her hair softly. Hanabi beat futilely on his chest, her deep sobs growing slower, her blows growing less frequent. Sakura found she could only stand there and watch in amazement at the exchange. Neji's pale eyes locked on to hers for a moment, and suddenly Sakura felt enormously ashamed for a reason she couldn't understand. Tears pricking at the corners of her eyes, she too fled.

She was just going to have to avoid that Hyuuga, except when she was required to see him. That would solve her problem. Surely that was the key to it.

* * *

_Well, dear readers and reviewers…I hope this section doesn't seem too implausible or out of character, but I would love to hear anything you have to say about it. And don't lose faith! There is some upcoming SakuraxNeji fluff in the next few chapters—so! Sorry this section is a little late, and sorry if I haven't gotten back to your PMs…I've been in the middle of writing a thesis, a seminar final, and a research paper. Hahaha…I'll soon be done so I can have a life, right?_


	10. Chapter 10

_Chapter 10_

How she managed to not trip on her blind dash home, Sakura would never know. At some point in the journey, she'd hiked the long hem of her robe up around her hips to facilitate running, and the sight of her pale legs flashing under the deep red silk had elicited more than one catcall along the way. Still, half blind with tears—tears? What was she crying about? She could hardly recall—Sakura opted against taking the rooftop route home. Somehow she was sure she would take a serious tumble in her preoccupied mental state.

Ino seemed more than a little shocked to see her when she arrived. Sakura barely registered what her roommate was wearing—a lacy blue baby doll and matching boy shorts –or why she might look faintly irritated as Sakura came careening into Ino's room, sobbing hysterically.

"Sakura, what the hell?!" Ino stood in the doorway, her hands planted firmly on her hips, a look of horror on her face. "Why aren't you back at the Hyuuga place? I was sure you and Neji'd be well into making up by now."

Sakura could only respond by blubbering incoherently into the long silk sleeves of her robe, which was quickly snatched away by her friend.

"Don't," she stated, something faintly dangerous in her voice.

Between tears, Sakura managed to make a noise that vaguely sounded like a question.

"You're going to get water stains on the silk, idiot. That was my grandmother's robe." Ino stood staring at her for a moment, and then sighed heavily. "Just take it off. You've already got mascara all over it, and I think there's some mud on the hem—honestly, Sakura, this is why you can't own nice clothes, you just trash them at the first opportunity." Ino was roughly peeling the formal robes from Sakura's shivering body, clearly irritated. Her jaw was clenched tight in annoyance, just like Neji's jaw clenched. Sakura rolled onto her stomach, sobbing anew.

Unable to take it anymore, Ino finally slapped her friend on the back of the head. "What the hell's the matter? You're totally ruining the mood, Sakura, I'm expecting Shikamaru any minute!"

Sakura bit Ino's bed sheets, trying to calm herself down. After a few minutes of silence, in which Ino finally managed to get Sakura out of anything she could possibly ruin while crying (leaving Sakura in her bra and panties, the only part of her evening ensemble that had actually belonged to her), Sakura let out a long, strangled sigh, and turned to face her blonde friend.

"Ino, it was a complete disaster."

"Well, that should be obvious from the way you're sobbing like a baby on my bed," Ino chided, coming to sit at Sakura's side. "The question is, why was it such a disaster? Wasn't he all over you?"

Sakura couldn't hide her look of complete confusion. "Why would he be all over me?"

"Because—you know, the stuff with Kiba?" Ino had set to smoothing down Sakura's wild pink hair, a look of frustration on her face. Sakura knew she was thinking about all the work she'd put into making it look so classic and elegant before the evening began, but Sakura batted her hand away as she grew more baffled by Ino's answers.

"You mean the part where I felt awful for making out with Kiba the whole time Neji was away, when we're not even dating? That part that made the evening completely painful?"

Ino looked a little startled at Sakura's revelation. "You felt guilty about that?"

Sakura sat up, propped up on Ino's pillows, suddenly registering the candles lit all around the room. Ino had definitely been waiting for Shikamaru. Where was he?

"Yes, of course I feel guilty. Neji's a really…good guy."

Ino made a small noise, and leaned her head on her friend's shoulder. "A good guy, huh?"

"Yeah." Sakura had known it all along, she was sure. Neji was a really good guy. Somebody worth treating well. Her insides clenched like a fist was wrapped in her upper intestines.

Ino sighed and patted Sakura's thigh in a vaguely distracted manner. " 'm sorry," she murmured. I was trying to be helpful."

Sakura couldn't help but snort. "I don't really see how. You're the one who brought Kiba into this."

"Only because he's really easy." Ino stretched her legs, flexing her toes. "I use him all the time."

Sakura jumped. "What?"

"You know, to motivate Shikamaru." When Sakura only stared blankly, Ino continued. "You know, to make him jealous. So he'll do things." Suddenly, Ino was crumpled in Sakura's lap, shaking with silent sobs.

More than a little confused, Sakura awkwardly patted Ino's back.

"Hey, hey, Ino…what's the matter?"

Ino answered with a high, squeaky moan and furious arm waving.

"Ino?"

"Ino?"

"Ino!" Sakura picked up the blonde woman by her shoulders and shook her.

"I went too far! He's left me for that stupid Sand brat! I'm going to kill her!" Ino managed to squeak out between sobs.

"Whoa, Ino, back up…" Sakura let her friend drop like a stone onto the bed. "What did you do to him?"

"I—" sniffle, "I mess up."

"What did you do, Ino," Sakura cooed, her worry for her friend growing. It was rare to see Ino this distraught.

Ino curled up against Sakura's legs, her nose pressed into Sakura's hip. Sakura petted her long blonde hair in what she could only hope was a soothing fashion.

"Shikamaru told me not to meddle with you and Neji, but I did anyhow. And he was really mad after the party when he saw you dancing with Kiba, and when he left for the mission he wasn't talking to me, but I thought he'd get over it over the week, but he was still mad when he brought you home today, and I think he's not going to come tonight and it's all my fault!" She paused for a quick breath before bawling, "I'm sorry! I was jealous!"

"Wait, what? Why were you jealous?" Sakura was absentmindedly braiding a strand of Ino's long silky hair, and must have pulled some hairs as she started at that last comment, because Ino whimpered.

"I was jealous because—because things haven't been going so well with me and Shika, and I've been so bored lately, and I know he's bored too, and here you are having some fun romantic adventure when I'm just screwing everything up. That's supposed to be your job, Sakura. You're the screw-up, not me."

Sakura almost laughed, but then swatted Ino on the forehead. "Sometimes I'm not a screw up!"

Ino smiled very faintly, turning her ice-blue eyes on her friend's leaf-green ones. "Very occasionally." She ducked away from a second swat, and continued, "And I did think maybe, fifty-fifty, it would help you out with Neji if you could make him a little jealous."

Sakura smiled faintly and looked away. "I—well, I don't think it helped. But thanks anyway, Ino."

Ino propped herself up on her elbows. "I dunno, I think it did help a little."

Sakura raised her eyebrow suspiciously. "And how do you figure?"

"Well," her friend mused, "now you at least know you like him. Or else you wouldn't feel like such shit."

Sakura laughed, a sad sound. "I guess that's true."

"So there you go. I helped, in the end." Ino's eyes shone with a mixture between tears and mirth, and Sakura could only smile back.

"Want my help in fixing it?" Ino asked, squeezing Sakura's hand in her own. Sakura's smile grew wider.

"Absolutely not. You're a complete screw-up."

"Hey! I take offense to that!" Ino pelted Sakura with a throw pillow, and Sakura, laughing, responded by decking her with a bigger pillow. It was war. Neither woman heard the apartment door open, and when they finally stopped, panting, they were both startled by a shadow looming in the doorway.

"Don't stop on my account," Shikamaru said, smirking as he leaned against the doorframe. "I don't exactly mind watching women in their underwear pummeling each other with pillows."

"Shika!" Ino bolted up from the bed, disentangling herself from Sakura's limbs, and pounced greedily on the dark-haired man.

"Whoa, woman, slow down…" he muttered. "We gotta talk." Ino pouted at him as she froze, his shirt already half-way off.

"Don't make that face, you know you screwed up. And so we gotta fix it, okay?" Shikamaru traced her jawline with his thumb, a faint smile on his face.

Sakura smiled at the pair of them, a warm feeling welling up in her chest. Shikamaru nodded in her direction, his eyebrow cocked curiously, as he and Ino came to sit on the bed.

"You wanna put some clothes on, Sakura?"

Sakura felt the warmth in her chest turn to a beet-red blush in a matter of seconds. She wrapped Ino's sheet around herself as she excused herself to the other room for something to wear.

When she returned, Ino was tucked in bed like a little child, giggling happily at some small thing in her hands. Shikamaru was stretched out comfortably on the foot of the bed, looking so catlike at that moment that Sakura could only smile.

"Sakura," he said, pointing at a chair, "Sit. We're going to come up with a completely fool-proof plan, alright?"

Sakura nodded, taking the appointed seat.

"Sakura, look," whispered Ino. She held out a small, round, shiny object in her hands. "He brought me a ring from Sand!" It was beautiful, in a clear, pale gold to match Ino's hair, with an icy blue stone that matched her eyes.

"Oh!" Sakura gasped, looking with shock between the two lovers.

Shikamaru stiffened. "I already told you, woman, it's not that kind of ring!"

Ino stuck out her tongue at him. "You shouldn't be buying girls rings, stupid! Any ring is going to look like that kind of ring!"

Shikamaru sighed heavily, muttering under his breath. Sakura could easily guess what he was saying, but ignored it.

"Plan?"

Shikamaru turned his evil eye from that traitorous ring to Sakura, who was waiting patiently. "Right, plan."

----

It had been a very long day at the hospital and all Sakura could think about was getting home and taking a long, hot shower. A team had come in from a mission, a genin team, with three broken arms and one broken nose. Apparently rescuing missing cats had gotten much harder since she was a genin. Their jounin teacher himself had come in with the broken nose, and had squawked more than any of the children as she tended to it.

As she was heading to clock out, however, Sakura was stopped by a familiar silhouette waiting just outside the door. She bit her lip, chewed on it a little. She still wasn't sure what to say to him. What had Shikamaru suggested? She rubbed her forehead with the heel of her palm, and wished that just once she could stop thinking so much and do something. Or that he could. Or that they both could.

She stepped gingerly into the fading light of the evening and smiled tentatively at Neji, who smiled equally tentatively back.

"Hi," Sakura said, her voice a little shaky. She winced at the sound, and mentally berated herself for sounding so guilty. 'Pretend nothing happened, pretend nothing happened, Shikamaru's going to take care of it,' she chanted in her mind.

Peering at the tall, slim Hyuuga from the corner of her eye, Sakura was relieved to see he was smiling, if faintly, at her.

"Are you alright?" he asked, already leading her away from town.

'Remain a little passive,' she thought. 'Let him take the initiative.' Shilkamaru's plans sometimes seemed a little impossible. Sakura was not known for being passive.

Sakura nodded, smiling at Neji in a way she hoped was brightly.

"Good," he murmured. "After you took off last night, I was a little…" His voice trailed off for a moment, and Neji cast his pale eyes towards her. "Are you sure you're alright? You look pale."

"I'm fine, Neji," she smiled, pressing her hand to his arm. She wondered where they were going, and marveled not for the first time at the way that crowds peeled back in awe as the tall Hyuuga prodigy passed through.

Her simple gesture was met with the faintest hint of a pleased smile at the corners of Neji's mouth, and the proud straightening (could it really get much straighter?) of his spine. Sakura couldn't help but notice the fine cut of his shoulders and chest, even under his traditional robes, and she blushed at the unbidden thought of running her fingers over his bare flesh. She knew how he would feel, the strange combination of taut muscle under soft skin, and she shivered at the pleasant thought.

"Cold?" he asked, monosyllabic as usual. She shook her head, noting absently that they were heading to a quiet park in a civilian residential area not far from her own apartment, but he didn't seem to believe her as he carefully, gingerly slipped an arm around her shoulders as if to warm her.

Sakura found herself unable to stifle a giggle, which only grew as Neji stiffened, perhaps embarrassed.

"I—I'm sorry if that was too forward, Sakura," he muttered, about to remove his arm, but she caught him by his wrist.

"No, Neji, it really wasn't." She did smile brightly at him. Shikamaru was probably a genius, she mused, something about being passive was working.

She felt rather than heard Neji release a huge sigh. "Good," he stated. His tone seemed almost happy.

"Where are we going?"

"Picnic."

"At night?"

"There are lights."

"Still, it's a little weird."

He grunted in response.

"Well, people usually picnic on a fine summer afternoon, not a chilly evening."

Neji's mouth was open as if to speak, but he obviously thought better of it and it snapped shut.

"And how do you know someone hasn't come and ruined the whole thing while you were waiting for me at the hospital? There are like—packs of roving dogs and stuff."

His eyebrows were knitting together, and Sakura smirked. "There are no packs of roving dogs in Kohona, Sakura," he stated, his voice a low rumble in his chest.

"Cats, maybe? Or rats?"

Neji rolled his eyes and pulled away from her to stare at her. "Do you want me to try and do this romantic thing or not, Sakura? Because you're really killing the mood."

She laughed. "Romantic thing? What?"

"Because Shikamaru said you wanted me to be more—" His hands clenched blankly at the air, and he wheeled away with a disgusted sigh. "You're frustrating."

"No, go on—Shikamaru said what?" Sakura's mind was spinning quickly. Had Shikamaru concocted some sort of romantic game plan for Neji as well?

Without answering, Neji grabbed Sakura by the wrist and pulled her quickly through the silent park, finally stopping at a glass conservatory, filled with tropical plants. He threw the door open, and Sakura was greeted by the heavy scent of tuberose and orchid, well-lit by the full moon. Sakura was momentarily stunned, unable to speak. Her free hand went to cover her gaping mouth. There in the middle of the flowers and greenery, lit with a pair of white candles on delicate silver candlesticks, was a small round table, covered by a white linen tablecloth and place-settings for two.

"Oh, Neji," she whispered, brushing gently past him. "You did this for me?"

He sullenly looked away, his arms folded obstinately across his chest.

Sakura turned to him and smiled, hugely. Her impulse was to hug him, but she didn't know how he'd feel about that. Should she? It was probably a bad idea, but this was so sweet of him—she needed to stop over-thinking.

Neji took a few moments to respond to her embrace, but when she obviously had no plans of releasing him, he wrapped his arms gently around her shoulders and pulled her a little closer to his chest. Sakura could hear his heart beating. It was so loud! Was he really that nervous?

"You like it?" he murmured, his nose pressing against her hair. She blushed faintly at the thought of that, knowing she must smell awful from the long day at work, but he didn't seem to mind.

"Yes, I do, Neji." Sakura pushed away from him a little to look up at his face, to show him how much she was smiling. She was pleased to see him smiling back, and she was struck again by how handsome his smile made him look. "It's lovely."

For a moment they stood like that, smiling at each other, both searching the face of the other. His face was so close, and even with the strong scent of the flowers, Sakura could smell him, his clean scent, so masculine yet so refined, much like himself. She closed her eyes and leaned a little closer. Maybe she should try and kiss him, she mused.

He swallowed, quite suddenly turning away and clearing his throat. "It was all Shikamaru's idea…I can't really take credit for it."

Sakura bit her lip, and found her hand catching the loose sleeve of Neji's robe to pull him back to her. "Shikamaru is a good planner, but you're the one who went through with it. Give yourself some credit."

Neji chuckled, his eyes roaming over the carefully placed scene, no doubt making sure everything was in order. "It's not often people tell me I need to give myself more credit, Sakura."

She couldn't help but laugh as well, and ran a hand up his cheek to guide his face back to her. She was going to kiss him, dammit. They both over –thought everything, and that was the problem.

"That's true, you are sort of an arrogant prick sometimes, Neji."

His eyebrows drew together at that and she enjoyed considering the little wrinkle forming between his eyebrows. "That's impolite to say."

"You're not going to deny that it's true, are you?" She ran her fingers lightly over his neck, coaxing his stiff body closer to hers. She was pleased to feel the way his muscles relaxed under her touch, with just the littlest of shivers of anticipation.

"I'm not going to get in a fight with you right now, Sakura," he growled faintly. He growled! Sakura smiled all the more and, imagining the way that Ino closed in for the kill on Shikamaru, pressed her full body up against his.

"Good," she whispered, on her toes to get her mouth as near his ear as possible. He (very helpfully, she noticed) caught her up, his hands on the small of her back, and brought her a little closer.

"The plan was to kiss you after dinner, Sakura," he said, and she could feel his heartbeat racing even more. She absently wondered if he'd ever kissed anyone before. She could imagine that he, so stiff and so unnatural in romance, never had. She started to giggle, and his brows knit together more under his forehead protector. When she didn't stop, he let her go and looked up at the sky through the glass ceiling as if begging the heavens for an answer.

"Sorry." She was still giggling as she sat down for dinner. "You can kiss me after we eat, as that was the plan. Don't want to ruin it and all."

Neji frowned slightly and carefully helped her with her chair. Was he disappointed? Well, they had all night, really, he shouldn't be, she thought, smiling to herself. What good manners.

Halfway through the second course, it suddenly occurred to Sakura to ask who had prepared the food. Surely it wasn't Neji—it must have been a servant of the Hyuuga household.

"No, I made it all myself," he stated simply. "I've been cooking since I was a genin—Tenten was terrible at it, and I'm not much for curry, so I had to learn how."

Sakura almost choked on her oyster. "You're an amazing cook, Neji," she said, truly impressed.

He smiled smugly. "Thank you, Sakura. You're an amazing eater." With a nod he indicated the two oyster shells on his plate compared to the nine on her own. She blushed, mortified, and slapped him on the arm with the flat of her hand.

He caught her hand, and his pale eyes locked on hers, any hint of a smile wiped from his face, he straightened it out and kissed the heel of her palm.

His lips were softer than she had imagined, and she could feel the hot breath from his nose on the pulse point at her wrist. She wondered if he could hear her heart, now racing, in her wrist. He could probably see it, fluttering in her chakra, sense her disturbed aura. He smiled against her palm and she, trying to be quiet, trying her best not to be awkward, scooted her chair a little closer to his. It made a horrible sound as it scraped against the slate of the floor, and she was surprised to hear him chuckle, but more surprised when he wrapped his arms around her waist and, so carefully, so tentatively, his pale eyes fixed on her green ones, pressed his lips to hers.

Soft as they may have been on her wrist, his lips were softer still on her own. His hands remained resting chastely on her back, and his mouth was barely open, but she could tell that he was hungry for something more...animal than this prim, careful embrace. Still, as self-possessed as ever, he made no move to deepen their kiss until Sakura pressed in against him, her tongue looking for entry into his mouth, her hand winding into his hair like silk, her heartbeat and her breathing loud and hurried with a note of urgency. Did he even know the historic uses of raw oysters? She could imagine that he did, but just as easily, she could imagine he didn't. Shikamaru, on the other hand, probably knew. Damn him and his terrible plans. But, oh, thank goodness for his generosity.

Should she start undoing his robes, Sakura wondered, standing half-crouched now in front of Neji, her nose pressed into his collar while he nibbled on her ear. She loved the sound and feel of his hot, moist breath on her damp skin. She slipped her hands under his robe and was pleased to hear his sharp intake of breath—she was less pleased, however, by an insistent rapping on the glass of the conservatory.

He heard it too, and he carefully guided her back to her chair.

"Sorry," he whispered in her still warm ear, and he pressed a quick kiss to her temple.

"Neji Hyuuga! We have a message from your uncle!" Clearly these people had no sense of propriety—just busting in as soon as they knocked. What if they'd been in a compromising situation? Sakura found herself absently thinking of compromising situations and Neji Hyuuga. She didn't feel herself blushing at all.

Neji ran a hand through his hair, straightening it where she'd disarranged it. "Continue." There he was, instantly returning to his formal, commanding comportment. Sakura smiled. He was so well trained.

"Your cousin, the Lady Hanabi, has gone missing."

* * *

_Dun-dun-dun!!! Wow! So it's been a while, I know. Things have been very exciting for me--first, I wrote a 60 page research paper on medieval French Lit. Then I graduated from university. Then I worked 50+ hours a week all summer. Then I moved to France. Then my computer was stolen in Gare St Lazare on my first day in France. Then it took me several months to get a new one. But now I have that new one and I can get back to writing! Well, I don't know if that chapter was any good, because I didn't proofread it because I've been rewriting it from scratch every time I proofread it...but I hope its okay anyhow. I look forward to all your reviews, and if it's complete BS please tell me and I will rewrite it. Mostly I just wanted to get some momentum going again, I was feeling sad because it had been so long since I updated. Thank you to everyone who reviewed during my unplanned hiatus. _

_ And for anyone unaware, oysters were thought to be an aphrodisiac. _


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